


Is This Really What You Want?

by randomramblesff



Series: But I Let You Go [3]
Category: Community (TV)
Genre: F/M, FBI, Internship, Milady - Freeform, Post-Finale, Romance, annie edison - Freeform, britta perry - Freeform, community tv, deliver us from evil, jeff winger - Freeform, jeff x annie, milord - Freeform, season 6, season 7
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-06
Updated: 2015-11-22
Packaged: 2018-04-30 09:08:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 41,746
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5158145
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/randomramblesff/pseuds/randomramblesff
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(PART THREE OF THE "BUT I LET YOU GO" SERIES) What happens when Annie returns from Washington DC after her internship, when Jeff's vision starts becoming a reality? An answer to the question, "Is this really what you want?". Set after the Community Season 6 Finale (S6E13).</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Step One

**Author's Note:**

> For PART THREE each chapter is a "Step" - referring to a thought Jeff has in one of the earlier parts of this series.

Jeff stood leaning up against a rail in the Arrivals area of the airport, waiting for Annie’s plane to land from DC. He tried to act cool but of course deep down he was truly excited to see her and his mind would be put to rest when she knew she’d landed safely, and luckily for him, he didn’t have to wait long as Annie messaged him as soon as the plane’s wheels touched the ground.

 _ANNIE:_  I’m home!

He hardly had the chance to reply as the doors of Arrivals swung open and there she was, looking left and right until her eyes caught on Jeff. She smiled brightly, scurrying as quickly as she could with her heavy case trailing behind her, the same hand luggage bag crossed against her chest as she’d worn the night he’d dropped her off at the start of summer. He stuffed his phone in his pocket and pushed off from where he was standing, pouting and swaying his body slightly as he waited for her to join him. He smiled back down at her as they stood in front of one and other, Annie’s arms open wide waiting to be pulled in for a tight hug.

Jeff tucked his head over her shoulder, smiling some more as her familiar warmth and presence came back to him. As they separated, Annie held onto her case handle, twisting around on the spot a little.

“Hey.” Jeff broke the silence, letting out a heavy breath that he’d been holding in during their embrace.

“Hey, you okay?” Annie said, her eyebrows tilting slightly, her big eyes making Jeff gulp slightly.

“Yeah, yeah, how was it?” He said, nodding his head back towards the door she’d come through.

“It was fine; I’m exhausted but… worth it.” She said, smiling once again… and then what Annie had been worried about the whole flight happened… they both stood their wondering, _are we supposed to kiss?_ Their eyes latched onto each other, making Jeff clench his teeth a little further.

“We should, err, Britta’s in the car.” Jeff blurted out, pointing behind him.

“Oh yeah, sure.” Annie smiled again, pulling the case behind her which led to another awkward moment when Jeff’s hand brushed Annie’s as he snatched it from her to pull behind himself. They both looked at each other as he took over the reins, their stare turning into a little laugh.

* * *

 

“Britta!” Annie called out, running a little quicker to pull her in for an excited hug. Jeff gritted his teeth some more, unsure as to why she was so excited to see her and not him… _shut up idiot,_ he thought to himself.

“Annie! Aww!” Britta smiled, wrapping her arms around Annie’s back. Jeff opened up the boot of his car, sliding in Annie’s case carefully, awaiting her other bag to slide in like a jigsaw. He stood with his coat on, the one that had a high collar and always made him feel quite confident (well, more confident than usual…), wondering how the next few hours were going to play out.

“Hey, here’s my other bag.” Annie said, nudging him with it. He jumped back to reality, carefully pushing it into his car, before shutting the boot down. He slyly walked towards the front passenger seat and nodded towards the back at Britta, flicking his eyebrows upwards. She took the hint, clambering out of her seat and sliding into the back. Annie smiled sweetly, slightly confused as to why she’d been given the ‘honour’ of the front seat but she took it gratefully, sitting down and strapping herself in as Jeff also sat himself down. He smiled towards her, checking on Britta in the back who shot him clicky thumbs and wiggling eyebrows.

As Jeff backed out of the parking spot, Annie was one hundred percent aware that his coat was now off, revealing his tight sweater that fitted snuggly around his arm as he pushed his hand against her head rest to twist around. She looked out her window, fiddling with her thumbs as they finally got away from the hustle and bustle of the airport.

“Britta are you coming to Jeff’s? We could all watch a movie… I’m feeling pretty tired… I mean, unless you had something planned?” She said, turning to watch Jeff’s concentrated face. He turned to her as he slowed for traffic, nodding in agreement.

“Sure… Britta?” He said, looking in the rear-view mirror.

“Err… yeah, sure, I’ll come. Day off at work so I’m in! As long as the film doesn’t de-value women or joke around racism, then I’m in.”

Annie and Jeff moaned, to which Britta rolled her eyes. _How did I never realise how alike they are?_ She thought.

* * *

 

The car journey wasn’t too long back to Jeff’s place so the awkward lull in conversation didn’t last too long. Jeff pulled up and switched off the engine, getting out the car quickly to scoot past the bonnet and open up Annie’s door, his face looking slightly giddy. Annie giggled, partly in confusion at his eagerness as he held out a hand. She unbuckled and stood out the door to receive Jeff’s hand.

“Mi’lady.” Annie was pretty sure she saw him wink before she replied.

“Mi’lord.” And _Jeff_ was pretty sure he heard Britta grunt at their little ‘thing’ in the back of the car.

Annie walked up to the door, admiring the little plant pot outside of Jeff’s door, questioning as to whether it would have been there before Jeff’s arrival or if he’d actually gone and bought himself a plant. She shrugged and waited for Jeff to come and unlock the door, her two bags in tow. Britta smiled away as the door opened up, flicking her eyes between the two of them… trying to pick up little details to remember whether she’d seen them _before_ she knew there was something going on.

Annie wiped her feet on the welcome mat, pushing her flats off to reveal her little magenta toenails that she’d painted the night before. She looked up, her eyes catching onto some interesting elements like the purple throw over the back of the couch, the silver vase Jeff had picked up at the mall, and a few frames dotted around the place.

“So, err, welcome to the Jeff pad.” Jeff waved out a hand to start the grand tour, Annie behind Jeff with Britta trailing behind, even though she’d seen it a few times already.

“Kitchen’s there, living room’s here, _your_ room is in there and err, here’s where the magic happens.” Jeff said, pointing to his door, but Annie didn’t really notice as she was encapsulated by a group photo that everyone had taken after their goodbye in the study room, which included Chang and the Dean. Jeff saw her smiling, realising that she’d not really been paying attention to his mini tour and that she’d probably much rather take it all in on her own.

“Err, I’m going to get a drink. Annie?” Britta called out, to which Annie snapped back up, blinking her eyes out of her daze.

“Err, a drink? I’ll… have whatever. In fact, I’d be happy with just water right now.” Annie said, spinning back around to face Jeff who was biting at a nail with one hand, the other resting on his hip. She smiled back as Britta got on with being bar woman as usual.

“Your room?” Annie piped up. Jeff nodded, turning to the door and swinging it open to reveal the neatly made (blue and grey striped) sheets and selection of mustard pillows.

“I added colour, see?” He said jokingly, waving his hands over the bed.

“Very nice…” She cooed back, giggling again.

“Your room?” He mimicked her, pointing out into the main living space. She nodded back, happily following him, brushing her fingers across the purple throw over the couch that she’d noticed earlier.

Her eyes perked up though as Jeff plonked her hand luggage bag down on the _pink_ striped sheets, just missing one of the perfectly positioned pillows. Annie’s eyes turned up in appreciation, her hands clasping up at her chest.

“Aww, this is so nice! …you seriously got them for me?” Annie asked, not really sure if what he’d said was serious.

“Well kind of… err… yeah, yeah I did.” Jeff admitted. Annie smiled back, perching on the side of the bed.

“Well, thank you… it definitely feels very… homely? Is that weird? I don’t know, I’m really exhausted and I could definitely do with making use of this bed.” _So could I…_ Jeff thought, shaking the idea out of his mind. _Not. Appropriate._

“Sure, well, you wanted to watch a movie right? Britta’s got drinks, you can unpack or whatever… and seriously if you _do_ want to stay with her at your old place, just tell me. Please?” He said as he got to the door.

“It’s _fine_ Jeff, seriously. I’m pretty sure Britta was covering up her lack of cleanliness when she said her cats would be upset by me staying. So, you’re good. I’m happy to stay!”

“Great.”

* * *

 

A while later, Annie joined Jeff and Britta in the living room, making Jeff shift a little in his arm chair as she came out in a super slinky lounge top and shorts that showed off her slim figure and the rough outline of her bra. He opened his mouth a little whilst scratching at the sides of his bearded cheeks as she sat herself down with Britta on the couch. _I’ve definitely seen that look before,_ Britta thought.

“Your water’s there by the way.” Britta pointed to the side table, watching Jeff as Annie leaned over to grab the glass.

“So… a movie? And you wanted take-away… right?” Jeff asked, holding his scotch in one hand.

“Ugh, you two are so cheesy.” Britta rolled her eyes again, wondering if Jeff and Annie would end up curled up on the sofa by the end of the night.

“Cheesy… ooh cheesy pizza… yes! _Please?”_ She smiled, looking over at Jeff with her pleading eyes. He tilted his head as he always did when he was succumbing to Annie’s beauty. He rolled his head a little before standing up and grabbing his laptop from the side, typing in a local pizza restaurant and placing it down on Annie’s lap. She smiled back up, before Jeff turned away to conceal his smile. But of course, Britta noticed it, making her moan again.

Annie clicked away, selecting her favourite toppings as Jeff scrolled through his phone looking at film recommendations. After a while, she plopped the laptop back down on Jeff’s lap… he _definitely_ didn’t notice how her top had slipped down a bit… _definitely_ hadn’t.

* * *

 

The pizza arrived twenty minutes later during a conversation about Annie’s internship. Jeff got up, grabbing his wallet from the side on the way to the door.

“Here. Keep the change.” He said, even though the change was only 50 cents. He returned to the living room, opening up the three pizza boxes on the coffee table, seeing how Annie’s tired (but still bright looking) eyes perked up at the sight.

“How did I not know of this amazing pizza place? They do fully vegan pizzas. _Fully. Vegan._ ” Britta said, stuffing the first slice into her mouth. Jeff tilted his head as he pulled up a slice into his own, making sure the cheese didn’t slide onto his sweater. It had been a while since he’d pigged out, but he just made a mental note to work out a little longer in the morning.

“This is _so_ good. Mhmhm…” Annie hummed. Jeff paused for a second, realising they’d yet to choose a movie.

“Movie… err, I have a few DVDs… I should probably get some more though seeing as I _still_ don’t know what my Netflix password is.” He glared at Annie for a couple of seconds before softening his face back to a slight smile.

“Just text Abed, he’s bound to let you know, and no… I don’t know what it is either!” She said, throwing her hands up in the air.

“I have this crime film or whatever called Deliver Us from Evil… not even sure why I have it but okay, anyone interested?” He said, flashing the DVD back at the two ladies sat on his couch… he suddenly had the realisation that he was currently eating pizza and about to watch a movie with one person he loved, and one person he’d hooked up with several times a few years ago. He gulped, waiting for their reactions.

Annie shrugged and Britta mumbled something, so he stood up, cracked open the case and slid the disc into his XBOX that he’d spent plenty of time playing on over the summer.

Annie tucked herself down into the couch, minding not to squash Britta’s feet behind her. Before Jeff sat down though, he pulled the throw out from behind them and placed it between them, slightly further over Annie, Britta noticed. Annie smiled up at him, another look that Britta had seen before… it wasn’t just any smile, it was an appreciative smile that she only wore on her face when Jeff was in her presence. It was Annie’s _Jeff_ smile… one that Britta had probably seen a thousand times before but until now, meant nothing.

* * *

 

A couple of hours later, Britta was in a cab on the way home and Jeff and Annie were both respectively getting ready for the night, using their own small en-suite bathrooms that consisted of two tiny showers, sinks and a toilet; the basics.

After brushing her hair down and scraping it back into a ponytail, she wondered into the kitchen to refill her glass of water, pulling at her long sleeves, wondering whether she should go and say ‘goodnight’ to Jeff, but her wondering was answered when he too, appeared in the living room.

“Hey.” He said, leaning over the kitchen counter as she used the sink. He was also now in a lounge top, one that was tight fitting and hardly ever worn (he usually slept shirtless but he thought he’d slip it on to avoid any awkwardness).

“Hey.” Annie looked up as she turned off the tap, smiling back at him.

“So… is the room okay?” He asked, not really sure what to say seeing as she obviously had plans to sleep soon.

“It’s nice, I’ve already said. It really is… the bed is _really_ comfy too.” She said before sipping back some water.

“Good… yeah. I’m glad you arrived safely… did that shifty looking guy get on your flight in the end?”

“Hmm? Oh, right, no, it was just me overthinking as usual.” She replied, a laugh in her voice. Jeff nodded, straightening his back a little.

“Cool… well, err, I’ll probably be up at like nine because I usually go for a run first thing. You can lie in though, I’ll lock the doors so nobody comes in and murders you.” Jeff stood back, picking up his glass again, completely ignoring the fact that he’d yet to fill it.

“Oh no, it’s fine, I’ll probably be up by then anyway… I’m a light sleeper even after a really long day.” She smiled some more, gradually edging towards her room. Jeff nodded, standing opposite her, holding back the urge to do anything drastic.

“Goodnight?” She said questioningly.

“Yeah, goodnight.” He said, walking across the room. Annie paused before speaking once again…

“Hey Jeff?”

“Yeah?” Annie stepped forward as he turned back round, popping her glass down on the side before wrapping her arms around him and tucking her head against his chest. He steadied his sudden beating heart as she did so, wrapping his own arms back around her.

“What’s this for?” He said, looking down at her.

“Just a thank you.” She said, keeping her cheek flush to his chest. He flicked his eyebrows up, resting his own cheek on her hair.

“ _You should thank me more often.”_ Jeff whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ("Easter Egg": Deliver Us From Evil... starring Joel Mchale)


	2. Step Two

Jeff was indeed up at nine o’clock the next morning, half an hour after the light from Annie’s windows had awoken her. She slipped on a zip hoodie and tamed down her hair before poking her head out the door to see Jeff in his sports gear, brewing up a coffee.

“Morning.” She said, walking into the kitchen area with her hoodie covered hands up to her sleepy face. Jeff turned around, his coffee in hand, his own face slightly sleepy but still looking rather dashing.

“Oh hey. How long have you been up?” He asked whilst stirring a spoon around in his cup.

“Not long.” Annie smiled, twizzling her pony tail in her fingers.

“Do you, err, want anything?” Jeff said, sipping back his coffee.

“Um, no I think I’m fine.” Annie stretched up on her tippy toes a little bit, wondering what to do now that she was fully awake.

“I’m going to head out on my run… you’ll be okay?” Jeff asked, pulling a bottle of water from the fridge.

“Um… actually I was thinking… could I come?” Annie raised her eyebrows, wondering what his reaction would be to the question. Jeff turned back around, staring at her oddly in confusion.

“What? I go on runs… okay maybe not so much over summer but I do! I’m not _that_ bad.” She said, her hair flicking in different directions as she emphasized her point.

“Err… yeah.” Jeff said, turning back around to grab another bottle of water, poking his head a little further in as the thought of Annie running next to him in sports gear appeared in his mind.

“Cool, thanks, I’ll got get changed. I’ll be quick, promise.” Annie span round, quickly shutting her room door behind her before sorting through her case to find her one and only sports bra, a t-shirt to cover up and some yoga pants, whilst Jeff laced up his trainers by the front door.

Annie was quick as promised, joining Jeff by the door in her tight fitting leggings and a plain white top to cover up in as she’d planned. Jeff’s lips curved up into a subtle smile as she waited for him to open up the door, a cool breeze blowing in around them, making Annie’s arms shiver with goose bumps.

She walked out onto the sidewalk as Jeff locked up, taking a sip of her water before she set off with Jeff by her side. As he turned, he forced his smile to stay put as he looked over to her in her loose fitting top that was lightly swaying in the wind. She looked even smaller as it drowned out her figure but he found it kind of sweet.

“Don’t laugh that I own one of these, but… you can use it if you want.” He said, passing her his arm strap to pop her phone in. She giggled a little, taking it from his hand and wrapping it tightly around her arm, plugging her earbuds in.

“Thanks.” She smiled, looking up at him, his eyes squinting as the morning light flooded the street, showing off his ‘smile lines’ more prominently. Annie never really looked at Jeff as if he was older, because when his age did show now and then, she’d always just pick out what made him look youthful, so it never really mattered to her.

“Mi’lady.” Jeff said, leading out a hand for her to jog on first, her little legs kicking up behind her as she started, Jeff joining at her side a few seconds after. He of course had to slow his pace a little due to the difference in stride length but he actually enjoyed just taking it casually as she did her own thing. She smiled up at him every now and again on the first stretch, the music in her ears blurring out the noises of an early rising city that Jeff was surrounded by.

Neither Jeff or Annie had really worked up much of a sweat, so when Annie turned a corner that Jeff had pointed to, she had an idea that Jeff was surprised by.

“Race you to the end?” She raised her eyebrows as if to say, _you’re going down._ Jeff smirked at her enthusiasm, holding out three fingers so she didn’t have to take out her ear buds, putting down one, and the next.

As soon as Jeff’s fingers closed up, she was away, making Jeff lurch forward, his water sloshing around in its bottle. A sweat was definitely working up now as they pushed themselves, Jeff genuinely impressed by her stamina and fitness. His chest felt tight as he caught up with her, only to realise that she’d slowed down and was now ready to set off again to win their little race. He rolled his eyes, his eyebrows scrunched up in frustration at the fact that she was still going strong. That’s when he realised though, that this was Annie… she could break you without you even realising it.

So she did. A few yards until the block split into two, Jeff placed his foot down awkwardly, causing a sharp pain in his foot. He gritted his teeth, ignoring it for a couple of seconds, before he was trailing behind Annie, in no hope of winning.

“Ah, _crap.”_ He said under his breath, spitting away a bead of sweat that was rolling down his lip. Annie soon realised that he was no longer behind her, slowing her pace and turning around, whilst pulling out her earbud to see a worn out Jeff, bent over and rubbing his ankle. Her face dropped slightly as she walked back to join him.

“Are you okay?” She said, her voice a little raspy.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine… just… going… to sit down.” He said, waving his bottle to a nearby bench. She nodded in concern, walking with him so he could rest.

“What happened? I mean, I thought I was doing okay but… not _this_ good.” She laughed a little, making Jeff poke his tongue in the inside of his mouth, half in offense and half in humour.

“Just landed on my foot weirdly… I’ve done it before, no big deal. But… nah, you were doing pretty good.” Jeff sat back on the bench, his two arms resting on the back, his one ‘injured’ leg stretched out in front of him.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Annie sat down, looking up at him to check for certain.

“Yeah… yeah, I’m fine. I’ll just rest it for a sec.” What Jeff really meant by ‘fine’ though was, _it hurts pretty bad but I’m not going to make a fuss because I should be strong enough to deal with it and I don’t want Annie playing nurse for me._ She knew something was up, and that if it really was fine that he’d be up and running once again to win the final battle.

“So you’re okay?” She asked, her voice sounding suspicious. Jeff turned to her, realising that her t-shirt now clung in certain areas like above her chest and on her stomach. He quickly looked away, not meaning to stare for too long.

“I’m _fine._ ”

“Do you need me to call a cab?” Annie checked for a third time.

“Annie, I’m _fine._ ”

“So, you’ll run back?” He gritted his teeth a little, holding back the pain as much as he could.

“…I’ll walk.”

They sat there for a while, Annie realising she was a little hot in her clingy t-shirt, so she turned on the bench a little, slightly insecure of stripping down to what was basically _just_ a bra in front of Jeff. As her head slipped under the fabric, Jeff turned, his eyes bulging slightly as her shimmery cleavage was revealed before his eyes. Annie slid her shirt off slowly, just long enough for Jeff to take a peep without her realising. As it came off, he bit the inside of his lip, looking up to the tree above him, taking a sip of his water.

* * *

As soon as they slipped in the door, Annie excused herself for the shower, leaving Jeff to plonk himself down on the couch, resting his aching foot up on the arm. Even with a searing pain in his foot that he should have been more careful with, it hadn’t been the worst run of his life, especially when Annie had jogged by his side as he’d hobbled back, because the view to his right was… well, _interesting._ He gulped at the thought, realising that he really didn’t need that right now as they both still didn’t really know what was going on.

Annie returned to the living room, rolling her eyes at the fact that Jeff was obviously in pain.

“Think I’m going to head to the shower myself… you should probably eat.” He said, pushing himself up from the couch, keeping his left foot straighter than the right to avoid any more pain.

“Are you sure you want to do that?” Annie said, crossing her arms and tilting her head. Jeff frowned.

“What do you mean? I’m _fine_ Annie.” He stood up now, crossing his own arms as he lent on his door.

“I just thought maybe you’d rather stand around showing off your _‘muscular’_ physique instead of showering… or you know, admitting that you’re actually in pain.” Jeff sighed, gritting his teeth down.

“I still don’t know what you’re talking about.” Which was a translation of – _I know exactly what you’re getting at and I’m slightly worried about the consequences._

“Oh really? So you didn’t just say you were fine so that you could act all strong and brave around me? I can tell that you’re in pain Jeff… you don’t need to ‘impress’ me.” She said, relaxing her shoulders and sending a mocking smile.

“What? I didn’t…” Jeff paused, realising that he really needed to stop himself from making up white lies around Annie, “…fine. You’re right… but I’m only admitting it this _one_ time, Edison.” He said, pointing a finger with a smirk across his face, before turning around and walking into the door before he’d even pushed the handle down.

Annie laughed across the room, shielding her smiling face so that he didn’t get mad. Jeff stretched his neck back, looking up to the ceiling as he held in his own embarrassed laugh.

“Shut up.”

* * *

In the shower, Jeff couldn’t stop thinking about how obviously he’d lied to Annie. Every time he lent on his foot, a sharp pain shot through him, making him think of another moment in time when he’d done something similar to hide his actions around her. She was right, the time he’d said it was ‘platonic shoulder holding’ was in fact just a way of pushing her away… it made him angry at himself, realising how out of the loop and confused Annie must have felt all this time.

He felt as if losing their little work-out race and landing awkwardly on his foot was karma… as if it was the world’s weird way of saying, _stop with all of this crap._ His mind span, his teeth clenching as the water covered him. He thought about the message she’d left and how full of hurt it probably was… and that’s when he realised that she was right. After he’d graduated things had got confusing because he’d left the little Greendale bubble, when all of his heart was still in it.

Jeff toweled off, grabbed some jeans and a sweater from his closet and got dressed, spiking up his hair before taking a few very nerve racking steps towards Annie’s room. _You have to do this,_ he told himself.

* * *

“Can I… join you?” He said, pointing the opposite end of her bed. She nodded politely as Jeff sat himself down on the edge, turning his body inwards to face her. He took a deep breath as he scratched under his chin, gathering a few words together in his head.

“You know when I graduated Greendale? And when I came back and was a complete douchebag? …that was one of the worst parts of my life since I’d met all of you guys. That year was a complete waste of my life… I’d been lying to myself and everyone else, and… you especially, about _everything._ I thought I’d go back and it would all be fine, I thought I was done with Greendale and that I could finally move on because that was the plan…” Jeff paused with his speech to shake his head a little, glancing over to Annie to see if she was actually paying attention (of course she was).

“…but I was just lying. I knew that things had changed but I guess that’s what I’m afraid of because I end up feeling like a failure if I don’t end up doing what I’d set out to do… I know it didn’t actually go to plan, but when Troy stood up to sign that stupid piece of paper, I knew I was just doing it to prove something… to prove that I still _had it._ It was the worst when you stood up because… I knew it was just yet another lie to add to the list…

You were right… I’ve lied about whatever’s gone on between us because I’ve always been scared… I’ve always been too afraid of what ‘might’ happen or of what I might hold you back from... and I hate myself for that because… you don’t deserve it.” Jeff gritted his teeth, glancing back at Annie who was sat up across from him, her eyes soft and wide as she listened to him finish off every honest word.

She felt her heart melt slightly as her eyebrows twitched in the way they always did when she was truly appreciating him.

“You shouldn’t hate yourself Jeff… I’ve lied to you too… I’ve done some _weird_ stuff in a pity attempt to try and _prove_ you wrong. I tried so hard for you to notice me in some other way than you already did… I guess it’s probably because you’re the only real person who’s actually _cared_ about me and what I’ve had to say so I wanted to latch onto that and make sure that you never _stopped_ caring… so, it doesn’t make you a bad person.

You should be _proud_ of who you are now… it doesn’t mean you’ve failed, it just means you’ve _changed…_ and if you don’t mind me saying it… you’ve changed for the better! Think about who you were six years ago… all you wanted to do was get in and out of Greendale as quickly as possible and now you’re clinging on to it because you know how important it is to _so_ many people. And, I’ll say it again… you should know how important _you_ are to so many people… I would never have gone to DC if I hadn’t have met you. You seriously are the _only_ person who has actually seen some sort of potential in me.

My _own_ mother _gave up_ on me because she thought there was no way I could ever get back to being me… but look at me now! I went to an internship at the FBI for like two months! On my own! You have _no_ idea how ridiculous that is to me… and you were a huge part in that. Of course I didn’t want to leave you behind, or anyone, but I had to do it and I’m _so_ glad I did and I _thank you_ for that. So, don’t beat yourself up on the past… if we all did that I’d be back on Adderall again and I wouldn’t even be able to have this conversation. Forget about the lies… forget about the fact that that _one_ year wasn’t the best… think about what you want now.”

Annie spoke with such wisdom and honesty that it almost made Jeff feel as if his own admittance had been far less significant. He gulped and looked back at Annie who was now looking deeply into him. Both of them were filled with butterflies and both of them weren’t quite sure what to do next.

“I want to stop lying to you for a start.” Annie melted even more, just like she had when he’d admitted to letting her go back in the study room.

“I also… want to be part of your life… I want to be the person you wake up next to every morning… I want to be person who _doesn’t_ stop caring about you and I _don’t_ want to let you go again…”

Jeff couldn’t even quite believe it himself… he’d finally admitted what he’d kept bottled in for however long it had been. Annie’s mouth opened slightly in awe, her eyelashes fluttering in excited nerves, as if what he’d said was the missing part of the puzzle.

Before either of them had even realised, their lips were together and they were pulling each other in for a long and loving kiss that melted them even further. Jeff’s thumb lightly brushed against Annie’s cheek as they parted, both of them looking into each other’s eyes, reading all of their thoughts.

Annie bit her lip, her soft understanding face slowly turning into a brighter one that Jeff wanted to hold in his gaze forever. Jeff looked down for a moment as if he was gulping in air.

“I… also want to take you to dinner…” He said, gritting his teeth as he watched her face change once again.

“Like a… date?” Annie smiled, her cheeks blushing slightly.

“Yeah.” Jeff mumbled his answer, feeling like a teenager who had finally found the guts to ask out his crush to the prom dance.

“I’d like that too.” They both smiled at each other, realising that they’d just crossed over a fairly big stepping stone.

“…this will probably ruin the moment but I also kind of want you to help me with these class plans…?” Jeff said, tracing the pattern on Annie’s duvet with his finger.

“Is that really a question?” Annie said jokingly.

“No, not really.”


	3. Step Three

Annie had slipped into the same little black dress that she’d worn during the paintball showdown versus ‘Silver Balls’ (she’d had it dry cleaned a couple of times to fade the stain – luckily all traces were now gone) after curling her hair perfectly… her whole body full of butterflies at the thought she was soon to be going out on a _date_ with Jeff. She didn’t feel giddy excited… it was more of a… ‘this could actually go really well’ kind of excitement.

Jeff had slipped into a crisp blue shirt that he was pretty certain Annie had ogled over once before when he’d worn it to work. He paired it with a pair of also rather _crisp_ trousers, some smart shoes and his favourite musky cologne that he usually only wore on special occasions. He was half tempted to shave his beard off but decided against it just in case Annie was freaked out by looking at a bare-faced Jeff after a good two years of stubble and scruff.

He knocked on her door once he’d finished getting himself ready, waiting for her to confirm she was decent. Once she did though, he was definitely not prepared for the sight that he was greeted with. He stood in the door way as she fiddled with an earring in the mirror, her dress hugging her figure in all the right places. He gritted his teeth as his eyes widened, trying not to make it too obvious that he himself was now ogling over her.

“What?” She said, turning to reveal the daring neckline at the front of the dress… Jeff really couldn’t help it, his eyes were fixated on her now. A second or two after she’d asked, he finally managed to string a few words together.

“Err… you look… different.” _Dammit, nice is the word Winger… nice,_ he thought to himself.

“No it’s not! You just haven’t seen me dressed up for a date before… well actually you kind of have because I wore this for the paintball last year with Abed…” Her cheeks blushed as she pulled it down slightly.

“I guess…” He could still feel that his eyes were wider than usual, so he made it a priority to blink a few times.

“Shall we go?” Jeff nodded as she stood forward, her heels tapping across the floor, but without thinking he shot out his arm and slid it across her front, his hand resting on her hip.

“I meant to say you look… nice.” _Dammit, drop-dead gorgeous,_ he thought once again.

Annie’s cheeks blushed some more, her whole body feeling completely flushed as he pressed his arm against her. It was as if every touch melted them both that little bit further… it wasn’t an electric feeling… it was a warm, fuzzy feeling that they both _needed_ to feel.

* * *

 

It happened again as they walked into the restaurant that Jeff had picked out (it was fancy enough that the menu was only a couple of pages, but not fancy enough that you felt uncomfortable if you weren’t as high class as the usual customers) … his hand pressing against the small of her back as the doors opened open. The pressure lingered even after he’d moved it away to pull out her chair at their table for two.

It suddenly hit them both that this was _really_ happening when the waiter lit a tea light in the middle of the table. Annie sat back, realising this was one of the fanciest restaurants she’d ever been to and the prices on the menu said it all… she promised herself that even if Jeff insisted she didn’t, she would order the cheapest meal she could.

“Good evening, what can I get you to drink?” Of course Jeff ordered a scotch, but when it came to Annie, he tilted his head and smirked a little, wanting her so badly to order a…

“A glass of re-… Merlot?” Annie said, blushing some more in embarrassment.

“Make that a bottle.” Jeff piped up, before the waitress walked away.

“Jeff!” Annie said, still completely embarrassed.

“What? You did it, see?” Jeff tilted his head forward, a broad smile across his face. Annie rolled her eyes, stuffing her face into her menu so Jeff couldn’t see her, but of course he had to make her feel even more self-conscious by tipping it down and peeping over the top.

“I think you should know Miss Edison, but isn’t it classed as anti-social to shy away from your date?” Jeff teased, leaning back down in his chair. She rolled her eyes again before he stopped and started reading his own menu.

A few moments later and their drinks had arrived – a bottle of Merlot (that Annie had awkwardly had to test before _obviously_ saying yes to) and Jeff’s usual scotch.

Jeff lent one elbow on the table, covering part of his goofily smiling face with his hand, one finger resting on his nose, admiring Annie some more… because tonight, he was _allowed_ to.

“Why do they ask you taste the wine? It’s not like I’m going to say _no_ after they’ve opened it up...” Annie said, sipping back a bit in her oversized glass. Jeff sniggered, finding everything she was doing ridiculously cute.

“Wait, have you chosen?” She asked in panic, looking up from her menu.

“Yup.”

“And you’re now just going to stare at me until I’m done?”

“Yup.”

* * *

 

When their food arrived (chicken salad for Jeff – he was cutting down after the pizza the other night – and a prawn dish for Annie) the evening drifted away on its own accord; the conversation drifting from Annie’s internship, law, Jeff’s class plans, Abed’s TV show, weirdest Greendale memories and food… all in-between endless smiles at each other. When Jeff spoke, Annie sat smiling in awe, and when Annie spoke, Jeff was pretty sure his eyes were glued on her… they _definitely_ didn’t drift lower than her face when she was looking away though… _definitely_ not.

“Would you like any dessert?” The waitress asked, looking at both of them.

“Oh no, I’m f-.”

“We’ll have the menu.” Jeff cut off Annie, knowing that she was only saying no to save him cash. She smirked at him, nudging his toe under the table. He smirked too, putting his foot beside hers, making butterflies fill their whole bodies.

The menu arrived, making Annie suddenly _very_ hungry for something sweet. Jeff decided against one, once again just because of that pizza. He insisted that she still order one… the thought of perhaps digging in for a bite in the back of his mind.

The thought played through when Annie’s hot chocolate dessert arrived, and when she was sipping back some more of her wine to wash it down. He grabbed her fork and scooped up some into his mouth without her realising… but of course she did when she looked back up and his mouth was a chocolatey mess. She folded in her lips and looked up at him disapprovingly.

“What? I _definitely_ didn’t eat any.” He threw up his hands, making it obvious that he had by speaking with his mouth half full. She rolled her eyes and dug back in.

When she looked back up, it became clear that Jeff could _not_ miss this butterfly making moment… a tiny smudge of chocolate was on her lip. He looked around, making sure that nobody had their eyes on him as he made a very cliché move, leaning over and brushing the side of her smile gently with his thumb, careful not to smudge any of her perfectly applied lipstick. Their eyes met and there they were… the butterflies. Annie once again felt Jeff’s thumb on her cheek for a few moments more, even once he’d settled back down, covering his face once again like a school boy.

“You had… err… chocolate.” He mumbled, looking away, puffing out his cheeks slightly.

* * *

 

“That was… really nice. Thank you.” Annie said, outside of the restaurant, twinkling lights surrounding them… her big eyes glowing up at Jeff. _I want to kiss you right now,_ he thought… _wait, I can kiss you right now… we’re on a date… I can kiss you right now._

So he did, his thumb gently resting on her cheek again, slowly moving down her neck, pulling her in with his other hand around her waist. Annie rested her own hand on his chest, leaning up a little in her heels so that she could kiss him back. As they parted, they stayed nose to nose for a second before sliding their hands down each other and standing back down.

“You… make me…” Jeff spoke, not really sure what he was trying to say.

“Speechless?” Annie said, scrunching up nose cutely.

“Yeah… I’m standing here like a… big goofy idiot.” He said, joking slightly.

“You’re _my_ big goofy idiot.” Annie said, smiling back up at him, before turning around and walking away towards Jeff’s Lexus.

He stood there for a second, his smile fading into a bit of a shocked face as her perfect silhouette faded under street lights. He gritted his teeth and gulped deeply, realising exactly what she’d said… those butterflies tingling across his whole body, his knees feeling like they could collapse at any given moment, even his eyes feeling slightly twitchy as if a tear could fall out of pure… happiness? Gratitude? No… he knew this feeling now… _love._


	4. Step Four

Jeff’s foot was still slightly cramped up from his little running mishap with Annie so he skipped his work-out for one day, eating breakfast on his own as she had a lie in after their first ever ‘date’. He kicked his feet up on the coffee table, turning on the TV to some awful early morning show and crunched down on some healthy cereal he was almost out of, whilst also scrolling through his feeds on his phone.

Jeff was a bit like a cookie… hard and tough on the outside, but soft and gooey on the inside when you found the right melted pieces, which was exactly how he felt this morning. He was playing it cool, not thinking too much about what had happened, but also smiling at himself when he remembered certain moments… _but still playing it cool_ because he was Jeff, and that’s what he did.

“Hey, is this seat taken?” Annie said after quietly wondering through the living room to join Jeff over by the couch. He looked up and smiled slightly, shuffling over, careful not to spill the remainders of his cereal onto his sweatshirt. Annie perched herself down, yawning a little as she bent her knees up beneath her.

“Whatcha’ watching?” Annie asked, nodding towards the TV.

“Ugh, I don’t even know. TV sucks these days... you find a good show and then it gets moved to some online network that nobody even understands how to use.” Jeff said with a shrug. Annie also shrugged, agreeing with the fact with a hum.

An awkward silence grew as neither of them really knew what to say after the progressions of the night before but when they did finally speak up, it was like when they’d both been thinking about coffee the week before Annie had left for DC…

“We should-.”

“No, it’s fi-.”

“It’s just a lit-.”

“Yeah, maybe-.”

“Okay well we-.”

“You should just-.”

“Stop talk-.”

“Maybe you should-.”

“Just kiss-.”

“What?”

“What?”

“What?”

“Okay _this is ridiculous!”_ Annie said, her voice screeching a little, before waving her hands up and down to calm herself.

“Sorry… but… what are we doing?” Jeff put his bowl down at her question, sitting up slightly, his hands clasped together.

“I’m going to ask you a question… do you want to do last night again?” Jeff looked over at Annie, knowing his answer was a definite ‘yes’.

“I… yeah, I do.”

“Well, then we… do it again… _and_ we do the class plans that I _still_ haven’t done.” Jeff smirked as he watched Annie roll her eyes with a smile… but it soon faded when she realised that this had all suddenly become very real. _What if we lose everything? Maybe this was a mistake… maybe I was just reading into things and maybe Jeff is just going along with it…_

“Annie? You okay?” Jeff said, tilting his head so he could see her worried face.

“Yeah… yeah I’m fine.” She mumbled.

“You’re not.”

“What if this is a mistake?” She blurted, her eyes glazed over in thought.

“What? Why would it be a mistake? …I thought you wanted this?”

“I do… but, it’s different to just… ‘dating’ someone. We’ve known each other for _six_ years… it’s a _big_ deal.” Annie turned to face Jeff, seeing the confused look on his face, his jaw clenching.

“You don’t think I know that? That’s one of the reasons I never said anything to you because… we got so far and then… well… okay I might not be the best person to say this but… you go into relationships expecting it to work… you’re allowed to _plan_ things and _want_ things and _expect_ things… even if it doesn’t happen. If whatever we do together doesn’t work… and we find out that we were just reading into things because we care about one and other, we’ll find a way to fix it. I’m not just going to bail on you… you’re not some dumb science project.” Jeff said, really admitting his own fears among his supportive speech.

“You promise?”

“If you do too? I’m not perfect and I’m pretty sure you know that by now.”

“Yeah… I do.” Annie half smiled, feeling like the younger version of herself all the way back during the Model UN… Jeff must have been feeling the same way too because his thumb was now on her chin, but instead of realising the creepiness of the situation, he pulled her closer, their lips just a few centimetres apart.

“I do too.”

* * *

 

“Okay so… how many classes do you have this semester?” Annie asked, sipping at a coffee that was on Jeff’s book covered dining table.

“Like three, here…” Jeff pushed a piece of paper to her which listed the classes and their requirements.

“You did these classes last year, right?” Annie peered at the paper, unsure as to why he’d really asked her to help out.

“Yeah… but I want to get my butt in gear so that I’m actually doing something right for a change.”

“Okay well first you just need to work out how you’ll put together a final grade. Oooh, you could do a mock-case and mock-trial scenario… that could work? Or at least for one of your classes… mainly because it _would_ be really fun to write up the plot and create all the characters…” Annie sighed, flicking through some papers happily. Jeff smirked at her enthusiasm, pouting at a ‘Law for Dummies’ book.

“Ooh look at this textbook; this could actually be really helpful for your smaller class.” Annie stood up, pushing away from the table to stand by Jeff’s side… recreating another moment between them; her low cut top in the corner of Jeff’s eye, just hovering above his shoulder. Jeff laughed a little, holding a hand to his face before speaking.

“ _Be careful. Abed thinks you two are gonna’ kiss!”_ Jeff mimicked Shirley’s voice with a coo, waving his hands in the air, finishing up with a closed lip smile like a school boy. Annie looked confused for a second, flicking her eyes between her and Jeff, suddenly realising what he meant when she looked down at her chest.

“Oh! Oh…” Her cheeks blushed as she walked away, sitting back down with a hand shielding her face. _Well this isn’t awkward… because in a way, if we are doing this… Jeff is actually allowed to look at me in that way…_

“Maybe we should do this alone… so we can be more reprodu- Istill did it even though I wasn’t being serious! _Productive!_ ” Annie pushed away from the table again, this time swishing towards her room.

“Wait… are you sure you’re not being serious?” Jeff called out to her room. She was partly being serious as the main reason for leaving the room was to get a hoodie to cover up slightly more, but then she realised she was being ridiculous… she swatted at her forehead, taking a deep breath and turning around when she slammed into Jeff’s chest. Jeff pulled his mouth back with gritted teeth as she did so, keeping his eyes up as the view directly below him was straight down Annie’s top.

“Look, I didn’t mean to m-.”

“No it’s fine, I just got all weird because… I _realised_ that what you said a really long time ago… now… sort of has to be fully accepted… and…” Annie trailed off, not really sure what she was trying to say.

“Wait, what? What did I say a really long time ago?” Jeff said, standing back slightly to look at Annie… taking a millisecond peep at her flushed chest area as she scratched the side of her neck.

“Oh… well… I… you… well… _okay,_ what I’m trying to say is that… err…” Jeff really couldn’t ignore It now, her cheeks _and_ chest were now flushed and rosy pink.

“…what you’re trying to say is that…?” Jeff asked spinning his hands in the air.

“If we’re going to do this we have to accept that either one of us is allowed to look at the other person in… ‘that way’.” Annie spoke, her eyes looking behind Jeff as her lips curled in on each other. Jeff raised his eyebrows and realised exactly what she meant.

A moment passed where they both just stood, their eyes wide open but looking in a completely different direction.

“Okay I’m just going to put it out there and say that this is really awkward and that maybe I should just get back to what I was doing whilst you put a different shirt on. Okay, great.” Jeff said at rapid speed, turning around so his unzipped hoodie flew around in different directions. Annie was left alone with her mouth gaping open.

“Oh…”


	5. Step Five

Jeff and Annie walked into ‘The Vatican’ together and immediately Britta started to watching onto their every move. She’d yet to learn about their relationship developments but for some reason, she could _feel_ the change… perhaps it was in the way that Jeff pushed the door open for her with his hand on the small of her back, or the way that he was so sure she’d want an appletini… or the way that Annie smiled when he sat down next to her, his leg stretched out a little further towards her than usual, or _perhaps_ it was the way he glanced over at her every now and then with his left eye… or maybe… just maybe… she was being ‘pathological’ (something Abed had mentioned once before in terms of relationships on TV).

When Annie excused herself for the bathroom, Britta shuffled her way closer to Jeff, whispering a bit as Frankie and the Dean chatted among themselves (she didn’t really care what Chang was doing).

“So are you two sleeping together now or something?” Britta said, making Jeff turn to face her, his neck crooked down slightly to meet at her level.

“What?”

“You and Annie…” Britta said again, emphasising her point with hand gestures.

“Stop that.” Jeff whacked her hands down.

“Ah ha! So you are!” She said, feeling triumphant.

“Ah ha!... No.” He joked, crossing his arms.

“ _Something’s_ changed.”

“Yeah, I hooked back up with that girl whose last name is Beeswax, first name none-a-ya.” He joked with a smirk.

“So something _has_ changed.” Britta sipped at her drink and nudged it towards him.

“Look… even if something has, why do you care?” Jeff lent in again, keeping his body facing the others.

“ _Because you’re my friends dumbass and I’d like to find out what’s going on now, rather than when you accidentally get her pregnant.”_ Britta mumbled.

“ _When, or if, we’re at a point when you need to know, then I’ll give you a call, but for now, would you mind returning to your seat so that I can happily drown myself in booze on my own.”_ Britta groaned and shuffled away, watching Jeff as he mouthed the words ‘thank you’ back at her.

* * *

 

An hour or two later, Annie joined Britta at the bar, slightly drunker than she had perhaps intended.

“Hey Annie…” Britta said with a broad smile, looking back to see what Jeff was up to.

“Hey.” Annie smiled back, sucking a colourful concoction up her straw.

“So… how’s staying with Jeff?” Britta said, slyly wiggling her eyebrows.

“Oh, it’s good actually.” Annie smiled, sitting up at the question, her mind thinking of something to ask herself.

“Hmm…” Britta hummed, her smile still broad. Annie swayed on her bar stool, giggling to herself in a daze.

“Britta can I ask you something?” She said, looking rather perky.

“Sure, go ahead.” Britta prepared herself.

“What’s it like… you know… with Jeff?” Annie asked, hinting towards a certain aspect of being ‘with Jeff’. Britta scoffed and gulped, biting down on her lip to stop herself from laughing (or vomiting – she couldn’t quite decide how she felt). Annie still slurped on her drink.

“What’s it like with Jeff, huh? Well…” She teased, scrubbing a glass slightly more vigorously than she’d needed to.

“…actually, maybe I shouldn’t spoil the surprise.” Annie shrugged at Britta’s answer, her eyelids drooping as if she could roll off the bar stool at any minute. Britta bit down on her lip some more, finding drunken Annie kind of hilarious.

Jeff turned his head to see where she was, pouting at her limp body over the bar, before putting down his empty glass and excusing himself from Craig, Frankie and Chang. He wondered over to Annie and Britta, his hands in his front jean pockets.

“Err… thinking of heading home. Annie, we should probably go.” He said, tilting his head to the door. She nodded in response, smiling back at Britta before following Jeff out to his car, where she slipped in and immediately drifted off as soon as her head rested on the side.

* * *

 

Jeff had to genuinely carry Annie back out of the car as she made a tiny mumbling noise in her sleep. He pushed her room’s door open with his foot, peeling back her duvet cover and laying her down, making sure she was comfortable and at no risk of hurting herself in her tipsy state. He decided to lay on the other side of the bed in case she awoke, his arm behind his head, looking down at her purple dress and her silky soft skin. He smiled before bringing out his phone that was buzzing at his leg.

 _BRITTA:_ Annie seemed to be enjoying herself tonight…

 _JEFF:_  She just drank too much. No big deal.

 _BRITTA:_  Hmm…

 _JEFF:_  What’s that supposed to mean?

 _BRITTA:_  She asked a very interesting question at the bar… especially since ‘nothing has changed’.

 _JEFF:_  What?

 _BRITTA:_  Oh nothing.

 _JEFF:_  Britta…

 _BRITTA:_  I wouldn’t want to say.

 _JEFF:_ You can’t tell somebody half a story.

 _BRITTA:_ Fine – you tell me what’s going on, and I’ll finish it.

 _JEFF:_  What? No, just tell me what she asked and be done with it.

 _BRITTA:_  *eye roll emoticon*

 _JEFF:_ Seriously?

 _BRITTA:_  Lips are sealed.

 _JEFF:_  You’re the worst.

 _BRITTA:_  Lalalala.

 _JEFF:_  How are you still annoying on text message?

 _BRITTA:_  I gave you a deal.

 _JEFF:_  Fine.

 _JEFF:_  We went on one date.

 _JEFF:_  Now tell me.

 _BRITTA:_  Ah ha!

 _JEFF:_  You made me a deal.

 _BRITTA:_  She may have asked me what it’s like ‘with Jeff’.

Jeff re-read the message, biting down on his bottom lip and looking over at Annie once again. Jeff’s eyes bulged at the thought…

 _JEFF:_ She was drunk.

 _BRITTA:_ When people are drunk they either make up crap, or admit to crap… I say Annie admitted.

 _JEFF:_ She didn’t admit to anything, she asked a question.

 _BRITTA:_  Which admits that she wants to sleep with you *shrug emoticon*

 _JEFF:_  You’re the worst.

 _BRITTA:_  Hey, I told you!

 _JEFF:_ Let me just remind you of something…

 _JEFF:_ Last name Beeswax, first name none-a-ya.

 _BRITTA:_  Last name meh meh meh meh

 _JEFF:_ G’night.

* * *

 

Jeff vacated Annie’s room soon after his conversation with Britta, because Annie was right about things being awkward. He had to admit he’d look at Annie in ‘that way’ several times before… heck, he’d made up a song in his head about sleeping together and got all dressed up when she tricked him into coming to the Biology lab at midnight… _of course_ he’d thought of her in ‘that way’, but actually being _allowed to_ was a whole new thing.

He knew that Annie had been drunk when she’d asked, and he couldn’t blame her for being intrigued especially when one of her close friends has ‘been there, done that’. It wasn’t as if there was unresolved ‘sexual’ tension between them… or perhaps there was? Perhaps what was making it feel awkward was the fact that they were both questioning the ‘when’ part of the equation… _Jeff_ was now the one being pathological about things so he shook his head and forced himself to sleep.

 _Patience is a virtue,_ he thought.

* * *

 

For the next couple of days, things were totally cool between them – there were no awkward moments, there was no snide comments from Britta, there was no confusion about what was going on between them… there was just… nothing _wrong._

They shared a few quick kisses throughout the days, one or two more passionate ones when the moment had been right and like Jeff had suggested, they went out on another date.

Oh, but then it hit them.

“I still need to figure out what I’m doing.” Annie said as they sat at opposite ends of Jeff’s bed.

“Yeah…”

“Everything seems to be pointing towards Greendale but I can’t help but want to go to Quantico… and I hate that.” Jeff bit the inside of his cheek as she opened up, knowing that he had to say something he’d really hoped he didn’t have to.

“Well, then, you should go to Quantico.”

“But what about… this?” Annie gestured between them.

“I’m not _that_ important Annie.” He gulped.

“What? So this has just meant nothing to you? You’d be happy for me to just forget these past few days?”

“What? I didn’t say that… what I meant was… if your decision is only staying at Greendale for me, then that’s not worth it. I can survive you being away again… I did it this summer?” _Yeah, although it really, really sucked,_ he thought.

“It’s not just eight weeks Jeff… it’s five months, and after that who knows… I might get transferred even further away.” Annie threw her hands up in irritation as Jeff gritted his teeth.

“Well… we’d work something out. Maybe I’d be the one leaving Greendale?” Jeff didn’t even think before saying that… suddenly realising that he could actually take that option. There was literally nothing holding him back from leaving anymore.

“Oh and then what would you do?”

“I’d find something Annie… although five months is a decent amount of time, it’s not _that_ long. We would work it out.”

“So you’d drop everything for me? _I’m_ not that important.”

“What? I don’t _have_ anything to drop… and you _are._ ”

“You have Greendale to drop… you have everyone _at_ Greendale to drop…”

“Greendale isn’t going anywhere and there isn’t anyone left _to_ drop. There’s Britta, but…” Jeff shrugged… but then something else hit him.

“Wait… Greendale _isn’t_ going anywhere… what if it did? What if Greendale came with me?” Annie looked at Jeff as if he was talking gibberish.

“No, I’m being serious. The classes that I run don’t actually _need_ me there… I could still teach in Quantico.”

“Jeff…” Annie shook her head, not taking what he was saying seriously.

“Annie…”


	6. Step Six

“Jeffrey, how can I help?” Jeff perched himself on a chair in Frankie’s office on the first day back at Greendale, his hands clasped out in front of him.

“How many remote teachers do we have at Greendale?” He said, staring at the reflection of the bright light above, on the floor.

“Hmm… interesting question… well, err, I don’t personally know of any… why do you ask?” Frankie answered, placing her pen down on her ring binder as her curiosity peaked.

“Things have changed between Annie and I… and she’s thinking of going to Quantico for five months so… I’ve been thinking of… maybe… going with her.” Jeff spoke with hesitation, wondering what Frankie would think. She sunk back in her chair for a moment, thinking over what Jeff was suggesting.

“You’ve thought this through?”

“Partly.”

It wasn’t as if Frankie knew much about Jeff and Annie’s past, especially as she joined Greendale around the same time they’d both started to gradually let go of each other, but she was of course valid of having a different perspective and opinion.

“Annie is a smart girl Jeff. A smart young girl with a lot of wisdom up here,” Frankie spoke, taping her finger on her forehead, “and I will admit, I don’t know much about the two of you and what exactly has changed, but for me it seems like a very big decision to make… especially seeing as we’ve never really tackled the remote teaching part of, well, teaching.” Frankie’s hands were now clasped as she lent on her elbows, a thin lipped expression on her face as she waited for Jeff to respond somehow.

“Didn’t _really_ come in here for… advice.” Jeff mumbled the last part of his sentence, not meaning to cause offense.

“The most interesting part for me is perhaps the fact that she’s 24 and you’re… 40?”

“Now forty-one…” Jeff muttered under his breath.

“So she needs to _live,_ Jeffrey. Now, once again, I don’t really know much about your history but I know that for the past six years you and your group of friends have relied on co-dependency so… are you sure Annie needs you by her side straight away? Are you sure want that? I’m surprised, mainly.”

“It’s _synergy._ ” Jeff muttered once again, trying to ignore her as much as she can but every word was like a poke at his heart… a stigmatisation of fears and worries he’s already had himself.

“Good talk Frankie.” He said, standing up and walking through the mingling students, leaving Frankie to frown before quickly returning to her work.

* * *

 

Annie was at ‘home’ (Jeff’s) alone whilst he started a new semester at Greendale. She decided to pamper and indulge herself so that she could make her final decisions with a clear mind-set, starting with a hot shower and a hair curling session. A while later she found herself in the kitchen, perusing Jeff’s cupboards for a snack. As she hovered by the fridge though, she finally took out the time to look at all of Jeff’s little frames, her heart fluttering a bit when she realised that a good amount of them were of her and him together. Just like that too, it was as if Jeff had read her mind, as her phone buzzed on the counter.

_JEFF:_ No committee meeting anymore and no afternoon class so I’ll be back at 1 – not sure there was any food in the fridge – can I grab you anything? X

_ANNIE:_ Lunch date? :)

_JEFF:_ Be ready! X

She was definitely ready when Jeff rang the doorbell, surprising him by how perfect she looked for just a ‘lunch date’. Annie could see Jeff’s eyes run up and down her slightly, admiring her little flirty dress and blazer combo, and how her curled hair was pulled back just a touch.

“You look very nice.” He said, leaning one arm on the door frame.

“Thanks.” She smiled, grabbing her bag from the side before stepping outdoors with him to walk to the Lexus. As she walked away happily, Jeff shot out his hand, brushing his fingers against hers so that she’d turn around.

“What?” She quickly said, before realising his intentions. He stepped forward and suddenly Annie’s little hands were around Jeff’s neck and he was pulling her closer for a kiss. They stayed there for a moment before pulling apart and smiling at each giddily, their hands swaying together between them.

“Bet it took you a lot of will power not to do that for… how many years? Oh yeah, _six._ ” Annie teased, spinning around and giggling. Jeff tilted his head agreeing to himself.

* * *

 

At their lunch date at a bistro in town, Annie couldn’t help but sense something was a little off with Jeff, and her sense was solidified when he ordered a _third_ scotch. She gulped slightly, watching him sip it back tensely.

It’s not like Jeff’s drinking was a _new_ thing, everyone knew that he enjoyed a good scotch to kick back his feet with, but seeing him look so bottled up and stressed whilst soaking his insides with alcohol didn’t exactly comfort her. So when they sat outside on a bench nearby, Jeff hunched over, his hands clasped, Annie couldn’t hold it in any longer…

“Jeff? Can I ask you something?” Annie spoke calmly and quietly, hoping that he wouldn’t mind her bringing up such a topic. He lent back in response, his hands still clasped.

“Yeah.”

“Do you… think you have a… drinking problem?” Annie mumbled her words a little, wrapping her fingers around the edge of the bench. Jeff shot his face up, meeting his eyes with her, slightly shocked by her question.

“What?!” He clenched down on his teeth.

“I… just… you seemed a little… _tense_ over lunch and you didn’t mention anything but you certainly didn’t mind having a glass of scotch… _or three…_ ” Annie’s voice nervously trailed.

“Yeah, because I _enjoy_ scotch. I’m not _tense._ ” Jeff said, gulping a little at the thought that she’d read right through him.

“The only reason I’m saying is because… I know how it feels to rely on something like that…” Annie bit her lip.

“You don’t need to worry about me Annie.”

“I’m not _worried_ I just… let me ask you this… what do you do when something’s playing on your mind?” Annie gestured with her hands, trying not to make it into a big deal. Jeff thought about it, not speaking for a moment or two.

“Don’t say you talk to someone either because… I know you don’t do that.” Annie gulped again, noticing how he clenched on his teeth some more at her comment.

“I…” _Drink,_ he thought, squinting as he looked up at the sky.

“Jeff…” Annie placed her hand on his shoulder, her heat radiating throughout his whole body. He rolled his head, realising he was going to have to admit to it sooner or later.

“…Drink.” Annie let out a sigh of relief as he finally did.

“I don’t want to make you feel bad or whatever but… you should talk to someone. Not me, or _Britta,_ or anyone… do you still have a therapist?”

“I don’t _need_ to talk to someone Annie, I like to drink more than some people do and I’m fine with that.”

“But you just admitted that you fall back on it… I’m not saying you _need_ anything but it might help you figure out what’s going on… I can’t tell you that… and I know that you might think I’m… naïve or misunderstanding things but… I’m not. I don’t think anyone wants to see you go down a path you don’t _need_ to go down. Right?” Jeff watched her, biting at his lip, letting out a breath once she’d finished.

“Are you… _scared_ of me?” Annie looked at him, seeing how honestly troubled he looked. She thought about his question, realising her only real fear was, well, losing him. She was _scared_ that one day he might take things too far because… he had once before.

“No, of course not. I’m… scared of _losing_ you. I’m scared of _everyone_ losing you.” Her hand was now resting on his, her thumb slowly brushing against his skin.

“That’s ridiculous.”

“No it’s not! I guess we never really brought it up because it was so shocking… but… if you don’t start looking after your mind and your _heart_ , then you could end up back in hospital again with everyone crowded around by your bedside. It sounds crazy but it’s _really_ not. You have people who _care_ for you and bottling everything up inside when they’re there to support you, isn’t going to help anything _or_ anyone.”

All Jeff could do is sit there and stare with wide eyes, realising that if even Annie was noticing things, it was probably about time he addressed what was going on… and he had a slight feeling he _knew_ what was going on.

* * *

 

“Mr Winger, please, take a seat.” Jeff’s therapist was a woman (called Susan – she had dark brown hair and often reminded him of Frankie which wasn’t exactly great in this scenario) who he’d been having odd appointments with for a while now, mainly to do with his dad or for when his anxiety flared up every now and again… but today, he was there for a slightly different reason.

“So we haven’t caught up in a while now but that’s good of course… catch me up on a few things, okay?” Susan said, picking up her pen and clicking the end.

“Err… well, I guess I should start with… the fact that I’ve probably started relying on scotch more than I should do.” He said, blowing out a sigh at the same time as if to say – _Step one, done._

“I see… I seem to recall you mentioning that and something to do with a hospital trip?” Susan said, nodding her head forward to receive confirmation.

“Yeah well, that was probably the start of it all… but I guess now I should probably start ‘talking’.” He said, using quotation marks in the air.

“Talking is a good place to start… so, let’s, well, start! Tell me, have you had any changes in your life recently? Work wise, relationship wise…” Jeff nodded, looking away slightly at the thought.

“Work wise… no… err, relationship wise… sort of.” He said, laughing under his breath.

“Explain ‘sort of’ to me Mr Winger.” She smiled, watching him carefully.

“It’s just sort of in the very early stages…” Jeff scratched his head, very aware of Susan watching over him, but that was the point really. He _needed_ somebody to confirm what he already knew, and part of that was having somebody from outside of your personal life, take their own view on things.

“Tell me about her… how long has it been?”

“Err… well, if you don’t count the six years before, then it’s only be about a week and a half.”

“Oh so you’ve known each other a long time then…” Susan spoke whilst scribbling down a note or two.

“Yeah… and things probably would have happened before if they hadn’t had been so complicated.”

“Complicated?”

“Yeah… we kind of… pushed things away because… well, partly I’m a jerk but also… because… she’s sort of… younger.” Susan stop writing for a moment to watch Jeff as his teeth started to clench some more, her mind curious to know what the age gap really was… so of course she asked.

“How old is she?”

“Err… nearly twenty-five… so… yeah.” Jeff sat back and scratched his hands across his beard, thinking about what that really meant to him.

“Does it change things… knowing that she’s younger?” Susan read his mind.

“No… but it makes me… feel guilty every time she… says something that is meant to be… nice or whatever. I’m holding her back, aren’t I?”

“Why would you say that?”

“Because she has her whole life in front of her and coming back to me is… not worth it.”

“Do you think the two are connected… your relationship and your drinking habit?” Now things were getting somewhere…

“I don’t think it’s that… I mean maybe… I guess things started to change when… I realised…” Jeff trailed off, looking up at the ceiling.

“You loved her?” _Dammit Susan,_ he thought.

“When did you realise?”

“Borchert’s Lab.”

“Borchert’s Lab….?” Susan said with a confused tone.

“The community college that I work at was about to get taken over by Subway when we discovered the underground lab where we met the founder of the school – Russell Borchert – who’d been living under there since the seventies. We got trapped underground with him and the only way to get out of the lab and _save_ Greendale was for somebody to hook themselves up to this emotional computer that started up with some expression of human passion… so… I hooked myself up and when I looked at her… the doors opened... and I knew then that… I was trying my damn hardest to push her away.”

Susan blinked a couple of times, completely overwhelmed by the ridiculous sounding story that she’d just been told. She nodded and tapped her pen down, thinking it all over.

“So you love her, let her go, and now you feel guilty that she _also_ wants to be by your side.” Susan shook her head in surprise, but Jeff just clenched his teeth further not finding it at all humorous.

“I think I see it Mr Winger… you turn to your drink whenever ever you feel as if you’re holding her back, and telling her exactly how you feel would also make you feel guilty if she also felt the same way back… does that resonate?” Jeff poked his tongue to the side of his cheek.

“Maybe.”

“Have you told her you love her?”

“No.”

“Well, before we arrange a follow-up session, you should tell her. See how that changes things… and maybe you won’t need to bottle things up and, well, crack open a new one.”

* * *

 

As soon as Jeff pulled up at his house, he pushed through the door, wrapped his arms around Annie, pulled her in for a passionate kiss (to which she didn’t really respond to due to surprise) and went searching through his room for something that symbolised a ring, but there was no such luck, so he forgot about it, stormed straight back into the kitchen, bent down on one knee, gulped and said those two very important words…

“Marry me?”

Annie’s eyes bulged, her heart fluttered and her mouth dropped open, letting out a small high-pitched gasp.

“Jeff! What are you doing?” Jeff’s eyebrows turned inwards in confusion.

“I asked you a question.”

“Yeah, _I know._ A crazy one… what are you doing, seriously?” Jeff’s face drooped a bit as he stood, looking down at her.

“I…” Is all he could think.

“What went on at your session for you to come back and do this? Seriously? We _literally_ decided to try whatever this is out and now you’re doing a Britta on me and _proposing?”_

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It’s supposed to mean that you’re obviously not thinking straight!” It was when she said that, she realised that Jeff looked incredibly vulnerable… it was so clear that he was only doing it out of panic… _he thinks he’s losing me again…_

“Jeff, did you really come in here thinking that I would say _yes_ to that question? I don’t know what’s going on but what I do know is that this won’t solve anything. I’m glad that you’re going to start thinking about yourself again but… why?” Annie fiddled with her thumbs, awaiting a response.

“Because… _because I love you!_ ” His voice raised as he admitted it, his hands throwing up in the air. Annie bit down on her lip as he said it, her heart fluttering and her mind racing, but she could still see the pain in Jeff’s face, so she stepped forward, brushing her hands against hers so that he would hold them together, before reaching up on her toes and pressing her lips to his.

His hands pushed up in her hair as her own hands found the back of his neck. When she pulled away, it was as if they could only stay apart for a few seconds because they _needed_ each other in the moment. Annie’s eyelashes quivered as she prepared herself.

“Maybe… we… should…” Annie flashed her eyes to Jeff’s door, another flood of panic shooting through Jeff’s face. He gulped and pulled his face back at the thought.

“I don’t… you’re leave-…” Jeff trailed off.

“You don’t know that-.” Annie said before Jeff gulped again, pulling her back up to his lips carefully, every moment so delicate as if they could both crumble at each other’s touch.

They slowly moved towards Jeff’s door, perching themselves on the bed, looking into each other’s eyes… both of them thinking the same thing… _I need you._


	7. Step Seven

The room was silent except from a few outside noises, as they kissed each other again, their kisses deeper but gentler than before. Jeff pulled away, Annie’s eyes meeting with his before scanning down to under his neck where his shirt buttons began. She leant forward, placing her hands on his chest, slowly undoing the first one, looking up at him every now and then as his shirt peeled away bit by bit. Everything was _so_ slow, like nothing Jeff had ever done before but for some reason, he didn’t even mention it… he just went along because it felt _so_ right.

Annie’s little hands finished undoing the buttons, trailing up his arms to where his shirt was falling off his shoulders. She peeled it away before he started helping himself, throwing it on the floor as a crumpled ball. Her eyes gazed down for a second before they were closed once again as Jeff pulled her in, her hands now flush against his bare chest. Then it was his turn as he held his fingers at the hem of her top, making her skin cover in goose bumps as she reached up for him to slip it over her head, revealing her dark purple lacy bra (he had to be honest, he’d expected her to have something a little more playful underneath but _this,_ he could work with).

And then suddenly, Annie was in his arms again, pushing herself up so that she could respond to his kisses, her chest up against his own, their bodies moving together. The switch flicked though when Jeff’s hands wrapped around Annie’s back, fumbling around at her bra strap.

There was no going back now… even if at first they’d both wanted to just lull in admiration for each other, now this was a necessity.

* * *

 

In the morning, Jeff woke up, opening his eyes and seeing Annie lying next to him, the duvet tucked up under her bare arms. He looked down at her, pouting slightly at the thought of last night… realising that it was all now very real between them. He pushed himself out of bed, had a quick shower, slipped on a pair of jeans and headed to the kitchen to start on some sort of breakfast.

Just as he was reaching for two mugs, Annie slipped her hands around his bare chest, holding him close, her cheek pressed up against his back. He eyed his shoulder for a second, just seeing her hair poking out behind him.

“Hey.” He mumbled, reaching back up to the cupboard again to swing it shut, her hands still wrapped around him.

“You love me, huh?” Annie asked, looking up at the back of his neck. Jeff tilted his neck back, remembering that he’d admitted it before they’d… well kinda’ _both_ admitted it in the bedroom.

“I… love you, yeah.” Annie smiled against his back, so badly wanting to say it to him too but wanting the moment to feel right. She hummed slightly at the thought, making Jeff wonder what she was thinking and whether or when she would say the same words.

Annie took her breakfast to the couch, her hair scraped out of her face in a ponytail, a pink hoodie covering the majority of a tight fitting vest and a pair of jeans skimming over her legs… but Jeff couldn’t help but see her in a different way as his eyes bore through her from the kitchen. He gritted his teeth and licked his lips slightly, remembering the way her skin felt against his and how perfect the night had been. He’d never been with a woman he’d really _truly_ loved before and it didn’t actually matter how good ‘it’ was, because that wasn’t the point… the point was that they could finally express their physical love for each other after so many years of holding it back.

Annie looked over her shoulder, seeing Jeff’s staring eyes and his slight cheeky grin.

“Stop doing that.” She said, her eyes squinted slightly. Jeff jolted back at the question, his hands holding steady on the counter behind him.

“What?”

“ _That._ Stripping me down in your mind… weirdo.” Jeff raised his eyebrows and puffed out his cheeks like a schoolboy as she busted him.

“Only seems fair seeing as you can see it all on display here.” He replied, gesturing to his ripped torso.

“Err… not really, do I have x-ray vision now?” Jeff scoffed at her comment, looking down at his jeans before wondering over to behind the couch, crouching down so he could brush his bearded cheeks against her neck, his muscular arms surrounding her as she cringed.

“And err, what would you need x-ray vision for?” His smirk turned into a ridiculously goofy grin as she rolled her eyes.

“Shut up.”

“Oh, that’s not very fair to someone who admitted they loved you.” He smirked again, pulling away before walking into the bedroom as an evil plan came into his mind. Jeff slipped on a sweater, grabbed a pair of boxers from his drawer and walked back into the living room.

“Close your eyes.” Annie pulled a confused face but did it anyway as Jeff scrunched up the boxers, flinging them over onto her lap.

She peeled her eyes back open, looking down at her surprise, making a disgusted face before realising what it could quite possibly mean…

“Ewww!” Jeff ignored her, strolling into the room as she shut her eyes closed again. He stood in front of her, holding in a laugh as her cheeks blushed.

“Open your eyes.” She shook her head, holding her hands to her face.

“ _Open_ your eyes.” She ignored him once again, until he grabbed her hands and slowly moved them towards him, his grin widening as she squirmed.

“It’s called _trust_ Annie.” He said as he placed her hand on his belt buckle… Annie was of course expecting something else to be there, so she was relieved when her eyes met a fully clothed Jeff.

“Shouldn’t you be leaving?” She said as she crossed her arms, making her chest seem even more interesting to Jeff. She rolled her eyes again as she watched his eyes trail south.

“I hate you.” He sniggered as she got up, storming back into her own room.

“Hey, I wouldn’t say that seeing as you haven’t even said it back!” Jeff called, partly being serious and partly trying to tease her… biting his lip when he said it aloud. 


	8. Step Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (A short chapter as it didn't feel right to carry on after the final sentence.)

Two days later, Annie was still unsure about her decision and it was playing on her mind all throughout the day _and_ the night and it didn’t help that in the morning, she’d wake up to the final day of her two-week decision deadline. So she sat up in her bed, flicked on the light and creeped through the living room, quietly knocking on Jeff’s door before poking her head in to see him lounging on his side, his phone in hand.

“Can I come in?” She whispered, making him look up from his glaring screen. She had to admit, he looked pretty perfect in the light, his hair in a perfect spike that reminded her of the way he’d had it on Garrett’s wedding day. She smiled with pleading eyes before he responded.

“Yeah, sure. Didn’t realise you were still up.” He said, stretching back over to his bedside, flicking on a light and switching off his phone. Annie also had to admit that his whole body looked pretty perfect in the light as he stretched, his arm flexing a little. Annie tiptoed to the opposite side of the bed as Jeff watched her, looking down at the pillow to his side.

It did feel a bit weird that they hadn’t shared a bed for a night yet (for actual sleeping that is…), but Jeff realised it was probably because if you were in a ‘normal’ relationship, you’d probably still be living in separate apartments so he respected that Annie might want her privacy and alone time.

Jeff was now the one doing the sensing as she lay back under the sheets, staring up at a spot on the ceiling.

“You okay?” He asked, his voice deep as he kept the room quiet.

“Yeah… just thinking.”

“About making a decision?”

“Maybe…” She said, still keeping her eyes looking upwards.

“You can’t tell me to talk to someone and not talk to someone yourself.” He said, a slight smile on his face.

“I’m just still so torn… what do you do? Do you try to evolve or do you try to know what you are? Right?” She said, quoting Jeff from years ago. Jeff understood what she was getting at, remembering the exact moment they’d stood there together… just a few minutes before kissing for the second time.

“Well, I don’t know how much that works in this scenario but you could try… evolving would be what?” He said, crossing his arms towards her a bit.

“Us?” Annie paused, seeing Jeff’s face change at the thought.

“…and, knowing what I am would be… going to Quantico…. but, taking that job sounds perfect. It might not be what I necessarily _wanted_ but I could stay here, gain more experience and _then_ decide what I _really_ want to do. Does it sound too good to be true?” She said, her eyes so open that Jeff just wanted to stay in them forever.

“I… no. If I’m going to be honest I always wanted you to stay… but I let you go because I wanted what was best for you… but I have to realise that you might _also_ want this… even if I am a big goofy idiot.  So… if we’re going to do this whole call back thing, I’d say you should look inside of there,” Jeff tapped a finger above her heart, pouting a little, “because… maybe that’s what scares you. I know it scared me.”

Jeff sighed a little bit, looking up to the ceiling himself as Annie thought over his words. As he did so, she wrapped her tiny fingers around his arm, resting her head on his shoulder. He rested his chin on her hair too, giving it a kiss.

“I think I know what I’m going to do.” 

Jeff had a good idea of that too.


	9. Step Nine

“Thanks for dropping me off.” Annie said, smiling and twisting on the spot a little.

“No problem.” Jeff also smiled, leaning back on his Lexus.

“I’ll err, pick you up too if you want… I mean, I don’t have to but if you want… what time?”

“Oh, err, I’ll text you.”

“Cool, have a good day.” He said sweetly before leaning forward and pecking her on the lips. He stood back once again, watching her walk away into her new offices of FBI Colorado. If he was going to be honest, dropping Annie off at such an establishment did make him feel kind of bad-ass, even if he wasn’t the one with the fancy badge.

He drove off, sipping at some water through a straw, feeling pretty confident with his sunglasses on and a cool autumn breeze filtering through an open window. It was the kind of day that Jeff needed a soundtrack to, so he turned on his hands free and connected with his phone, starting off a random playlist with a song that sounded fitting.

_“She lit a fire, but now she's in my every thought…”_

* * *

 

Jeff was half way through his final class of the day when he realised he’d forgotten to check his phone for Annie’s text. He pulled out his phone during a monologue and checked his messages…

 _ANNIE:_ Can you be here by five?

 _JEFF:_ Crap, sorry, I’ll be there ASAP.

 _Dammit,_ he thought. For once he wanted to surprise Annie and try to actually do something right. He wanted to stop surprising her and have her start expecting things _other_ than him messing up and he’d already messed that up too.

“Dave, what’s the time?” He asked, putting his phone back in his pocket, well aware that the phone had the time, as well as his watch and…

“There’s a clock just there sir.” Dave pointed up towards the wall.

“Yeah, don’t care, just tell me.” Jeff scrunched his sleeves up his arm as he awaited Dave’s response.

“Err… ten past four?” Dave said, his pointing finger still lingering in the air.

“Ten past four… okay, class dismissed early… you can just go over that page again and err… tell me something about time and law. Yeah, easy. Okay, now scoot.” He said, tucking his chair under his desk whilst waving his students out.

“Ooooh, Winger’s got a date.” He heard from the back of the room. He shot his head up, scouring their faces to find the culprit.

“What? No I don’t? What makes you say that?”

“Because usually when you have a date you brag about it, don’t you? And you’re all worried over the time and stuff so…” The student shrugged.

“I don’t brag… and okay, who cares. Leave the classroom, I’m actually _allowing_ you to leave so… get out.”

A few minutes after, Jeff was in his car again, the windows up and the music switched off, his mind not really in the same uplifted mood as in the morning. He did love Greendale but it was tiring stuff, even if he still wasn’t exactly putting in as much effort as he should have been.

The drive to Annie’s new office was about forty minutes so if traffic wasn’t too chock-a-block, he could probably make it right on time… he hoped.

But of course, once again, he was going to mess things up as his gas tank flashed empty half way en-route. He pulled up at the closest station, slamming his door shut and filling up at lightning speed. He checked his watch; twenty minutes there, fifteen minutes until five. _I can do it,_ he thought.

Unfortunately though, an ambulance didn’t agree as it slowed him down once again, sirens blaring. Jeff rolled his eyes and rubbed his forehead as he waited for it to drive by. _Come on!_

Finally, at two minutes past five, Jeff was back in the parking lot and he’d genuinely made it there before Annie… he scanned the outside perimeter, not seeing anyone quite as good looking as her (or quite as small). He checked his phone, but no messages were there, so he waited. _I’m waiting… for Annie…_ he sniggered to himself.

* * *

 

Inside the office, Annie was sat with her new colleagues over a coffee whilst she did in fact wait for Jeff. She was already getting along with everyone well, even if it was just a part-time gig it was fun to get to know some more friendly faces who luckily didn’t seem quite as intimidating as the people she’d worked with back in DC.

“Ooooh, who’s that hunk in the parking lot?” Somebody cooed from the group. Annie looked out, her eyes landing on the hunk, her lips folding in as she let out a squeak of a laugh.

“Wait… is that… that guy you were talking about? What was his name?”

“Err… Jeff… and… yes, that his him which means I’m ready to go… so sorry ladies but I’ll see you tomorrow!” Annie smiled, stepping down from her stool.

“Wow… he is quite something. You lucky thing!” Annie smiled awkwardly, peering back out through the window, realising that one, they were totally right about Jeff’s looks, but two, realising that she was indeed lucky… he was there, picking her up, _on_ time. She bit on her lip as she scurried out of the door, her bag bouncing on the side of her hip.

Jeff looked up and saw her, his squinting eyes turning into smiling ones. He walked forward expecting some form of hug, but was treated by a kiss in which Annie obviously intended for him to respond to, her legs flicking up so he could spin her up and around slightly. Her arms wrapped tightly around his neck… it was a kiss that her new colleagues were sure to be jealous of, sat back in the lounge sipping on coffees.

As Annie settled back down she looked back up at Jeff with her Disney eyes.

“Do you know what?” She asked happily.

“What?” Jeff crossed his arms.

“I think I love you.” Jeff smiled and rocked back slightly…

“You _think?”_ Annie rolled her eyes, wrapping her arms back around him.

“Fine… I do. I do love you.”

* * *

 

The sharp contrast between the FBI and Greendale suddenly shocked Annie when she arrived on campus for the first time in what felt like forever. Jeff and her had decided that they were going to keep the whole ‘student – teacher’ thing on the down low, but make the right decision of telling the Dean and making it official. So the first item on their agenda’s before either of their classes began was a meeting with Craig in his office. They both sat down awkwardly… for some reason it felt like the time during the Ass Crack Bandit ‘episode’ when they’d been interrogated for going off on ‘creepy capers’.

“So… you two, huh?” The Dean said, wagging a finger between them, his glasses nudged down his nose just a little. Jeff shifted in his seat a little.

“I suppose I could fill out the form…” The Dean placed a sheet of paper in front of them, pulling the cap off of his pen.

“How long have you been… you know, ‘dating’?” Jeff rolled his eyes at the ridiculousness of it all.

“…two weeks?” Jeff mumbled questioningly, not really sure what else he was meant to say.

“Two weeks? That’s all?” The Dean said with surprise.

“Well, you know, it’s not like we were strangers before… we just wanted to let you know in case you found out by…” Annie gestured her hands thinking of a way he might find out.

“…Pierce’s Twitter account?” Jeff looked up at the ceiling, wanting to die a little bit. _Not now,_ he thought. Annie looked at him, squeezing his hand.

“Is it a… _sexual_ relationship?” The Dean asked, making both Annie and Jeff moan slightly.

“Craig, give me that piece of paper. If you…” Jeff grabbed the sheet, realising every question was the same as when things had gone wrong with Slater. Jeff gulped. “…these questions are seriously all still on here?” Annie looked at him with wide eyes.

“Well, we haven’t exactly had that many teacher and student relationships since the last time, _Jeffrey._ ” The Dean peered over his glasses once again.

“We have to answer every one of these?” Craig adjusted the collar of his shirt, wiggling his tie a little.

“Yes.” Jeff rolled his eyes, turning his chair around, gesturing for Annie to do the same.

 _“We don’t have to answer these, we’ll just fill them all in roughly_.” Jeff lowered his voice to a whisper.

_“Jeff, we probably should do!”_

_“Oh, so you’re really going to answer whether you ‘might consider spending the night with a third person’?”_ Jeff looked at Annie, awaiting her response, but she just sighed.

A minute later they turned around and passed the piece of paper back to the Dean, who scratched behind his ear and swallowed deeply, _definitely_ not looking over the answers already.

“Okay, that will be all.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “She lit a fire, but now she's in my every thought…” - She Lit A Fire by Lord Huron


	10. Step Nine (and a half)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Sorry for the weird cut-off of "Step Nine"... I didn't really think I was going to continue the same day but then I did so... here's "Step Nine (and a half)"

Jeff decided to find Annie in the cafeteria for lunch, not realising that he would also be joined by Britta, Chang and Frankie who were all perched around a table digging into some dry meatballs. Jeff wondered over, a slight pout on his face as he assessed how this was going to go… the only space left was indeed next to Annie but he shrugged it off realising it was basically no different to the many times they’d sat next to each other before… _other than the fact we’ve slept together that is,_ Jeff thought.

“Hey Britta, what are you doing here?” Jeff asked, sliding in next to Annie, giving her a tiny half smile that was merely noticeable.

“I realised that I still have some classes to finish up before I can officially become a psych major so I’m back… _back back, back again, again again…”_ Britta trailed off into a sing-song voice. Jeff scrunched up his face.

“So… you _realised_ you did?” He smirked slightly.

“Oh shut up, the real question is why Annie is here… I thought you were going back to DC?”

“Oh well I actually found a job in the Colorado offices so I’m staying. Seems pretty good to me!” Annie said happily, trying her hardest not to look back at Jeff beside her. She was very aware that his leg was pressed right up against hers, the fabric of her trousers brushing against her skin every time he moved.

“So do I need to do some kind of clean-out session for the apartment?” Britta asked before sucking through the straw in her drink.

“Err… well…” _We didn’t think of this one did we Jeff,_ she thought. Jeff’s eyes flicked to Annie as he bit down on his lip, thinking the exact same thing. Everyone’s eyes were now on the both of them. Britta looked at Jeff, her mouth dropping open a bit in surprise.

“Ooooh…” Britta, Frankie and Chang all let out an understanding ‘ooooh’ in unison. Jeff folded in his lips, looking back down at his plate.

“Wait, why are we ‘ooooh’ing?” Chang said, squinting in confusion. Britta sighed.

“They’re sleeping together.” Jeff looked away as she said it, his chest puffing out slightly. Annie rolled her eyes, letting her hands drop to her lap.

“Ooooh…” Chang said, finally putting two and two together.

“Well I think it’s great you two made a decision… I still don’t really understand it but err, okay.” Frankie spoke up, making Annie feel even more uncomfortable.

“Okay well I’m going to go back to my office, and you can all sit here without me. Okay.” Jeff said, reading the awkward silence that had fallen over them. He got up with his tray, leaving Annie to sit there and pick up the pieces on her own.

“Just go, Annie.” Britta said a moment later, waving off behind her. Annie nodded, taking her tray with her too.

“Do either of you understand it?” Frankie asked, sitting forward as Annie walked off. Britta shook her head, even though she probably _did_ understand it more than Frankie who was completely out of the loop.

“Were they together before?” Frankie asked again.

“Nope.”

“Nah, but they _totally_ would be if it wasn’t for Britta.” Chang piped up with a snigger in his voice.

“Britta?” Frankie was now one hundred percent confused.

“…we hooked up a few times.” Britta said in a mumbled voice, looking away and crossing her arms.

“Oh dear lord… poor Annie…” Frankie threw up her arms, settling them down on her elbows to rub her temples.

“Poor _Annie?_ She’s the one who stuck her tongue down Jeff’s throat when I told him I loved him!” Britta moaned, her voice shrieking slightly.

“You love him?!” Frankie leaned forward.

“What? No! This was like six years ago.”

“Ooooh… but you still have feelings for him?”

“No! I do _not_ have feelings for Jeff. Him and Annie can have a perfectly happy relationship.” Britta lifted up her chin defiantly with a smile.

* * *

 

The next big drama came the next day when Frankie and the Dean decided to start back up the committee in the hopes of ‘improving’ Greendale now that it was done being saved. Although it would mean taking Greendale from a cigarette to carrot stick, it was worth a shot… but of course they had to get Jeff on board again first.

“Good afternoon Jeffrey. How would you feel about starting back up your little Save Greendale Committee?” The Dean waltzed into Jeff’s office happily, ignoring the fact that Annie was also in the room, sitting on a spinning chair with her phone in hand. Her eyes perked up as the Dean and Frankie entered, looking over to Jeff once the idea was out.

“Well, it wouldn’t quite be the Save Greendale Committee anymore… more like the Improve Greendale Committee… but we wouldn’t want to do it without your help and guidance.” Frankie spoke, verging on the try-hard line of convincing Jeff to do things.  

Annie sat happily smiling at the though, still unsure if either the Dean or Frankie had noticed her.

“Meh, whatever.” Jeff shrugged, flinging his feet up onto his desk. Annie made a squeal, clenching her hands up at her chest.

“AH! Oh my dean!” The Dean jumped back, making Annie realise that she definitely hadn’t been noticed. Frankie also stumbled back, not saying a word in surprise.

“Sorry… but that’s so great! When’s the first meeting?” Annie piped up from the corner, Jeff watching her with wide eyes.

“Err… well… actually…” The Dean scratched his head whilst Frankie stayed silent.

“Craig…?” Jeff’s voice trailed off warily.

“AnniecantbepartofthecommitteebecauseitsaconflictofinterestIdidntmakethedecisionitwastheschoolboard!” The Dean spoke so fast, taking a humungous breath of air in at the end.

“Wait… what? I can’t be part of the committee?” Annie’s voice was squeaky again but in a different tone than before. Jeff sat forward, swinging his feet down again.

“Well it’s just that your place could be for another student who… perhaps isn’t in a relationship with Jeff.” Frankie said, looking down at her hands that held a clipboard, feeling slightly guilty.

“Well then I’m not doing it. Annie’s the reason we saved the school, I mean come on Frankie, you know that. There is literally no way we would be standing here if it wasn’t for her.” Jeff said, thinking of not only the 534 tasks she’d managed to get done but also the fact that if she hadn’t had been in Borchert’s lab with him, it was very unlikely that the door would have opened up again.

“It’s really not our decision Jeffrey.” The Dean piped up, scratching his head once again.

“Fine well I’m not doing it and it’s got nothing to do with the fact that we’re dating. End of.” Jeff crossed his arms and watched the Dean, genuinely getting frustrated with the fact that they were still standing in front of him.

“Jeff… it’s okay, I can help in other ways, it’s fine… seriously…” Annie stood up and joined him at his desk, her eyes once again melting him a bit.

“No, I’m not doing it.” Jeff put his foot down on the topic, but there was no way Annie was letting him off of this one.

“Jeff, it’s _fine._ Trust me.” Annie looked down at him, twisting her eyebrows slightly.

“I’ll do the meeting but _only_ if you talk to the school board about Annie being part of the group. I don’t even understand how it’s a conflict of interest?” Jeff said, uncrossing one of his arms.

“We’ll see you at four.” The Dean quickly rushed out the room, Frankie following behind, leaving Jeff and Annie alone once again.

* * *

 

“Why’s Annie sitting on the couch?” Britta asked, twisting around in her chair to look at the other side of the study room.

“The Dean thinks it’s a conflict of interest for her to be in the group even though she basically did _all_ the hard work, so… she’s not in it.” Jeff shrugged, rocking back on his chair, awaiting the arrival of Frankie. Britta shrugged too, looking at Annie who was sat flicking through her faux-fur covered binder.

A couple of Bejewelled games later, the Dean and Frankie joined them, making Jeff twist around in his seat, awaiting what he had to say.

“I spoke to the board so…. Annie you can sit at the table… as long as you keep your affairs at the very minimum and we don’t have a repeat of paintball 2010.” Frankie turned to the Dean in confusion as Annie happily sat back down in her usual seat, Jeff shuffling a bit so his body was now completely in her direction, smiling back at her, their eye contact making Britta ‘gag’.

“What happened during paintball… 2010?” Jeff had to turn again though, his eyes bulging at Britta as himself, her and the Dean spoke in unison.

“Nothing!”

“Jeff and Britta had sex on the table.” Annie rolled her eyes.

“You had… sex on the… oh dear lord! What is wrong with you people!” Frankie said, her voice squeaking in anger.

As the Dean left, Frankie sat herself down next to Chang who was still fiddling away on his phone, before she realised what ‘the table’ meant. She squirmed and everyone moaned at her.

“That table got burned.” Annie said, looking away from Jeff who for some reason was smirking.

“No one _has_ christened Table Mark II yet, so you know…” Annie shot her eyes back at him with a glare.

“ _Jeff!_ ” She shrieked, but it only made him grin some more.

“Okay we are now installing new CCTV cameras in _all_ classrooms and study rooms…” Frankie said, jotting down a note in her Filofax.

“Anyway, maybe we should just get on with the first meeting seeing as we’re now _improving_ Greendale rather than _saving_ Greendale.” Annie said, trying her best to steer the topic of conversation away from Jeff and Britta’s past.

“A great idea Annie. First of all, we should probably start with the fact that we have two empty spaces to be filled.” Frankie said, waving her hand towards the chairs previously ‘owned’ by Abed and Shirley (or Elroy…).

The group tuned to Abed’s chair, letting out a very tiny sigh at the fact that his ‘Probably… maybe’ was much more like a ‘Probably not’.

“Well I guess we could start thinking of some other students… Jeff, you probably have some suggestions?” Annie said, looking in his direction.

“Dave.” He said almost immediately, to which everyone squinted in confusion.

“Dave, he’s in one of my classes…” Everyone still stared blankly back at him, not knowing who on earth he was talking about. Finally, Jeff decided to use hand gestures, waving his hands up by his hair in a circle.

“Still not _really_ sure…” Frankie added.

“Oh come on, the guy with the afro.” He finally caved in, giving them a clearer definition and label.

“Ooooh, that guy.” Britta said, pointing with her finger.

“Jeff, will you mention it to him?” Frankie asked to which Jeff just shrugged and nodded.

“Okay, any other suggestions?” Silence hit the room as everyone mulled over different candidates, soon realising there really was nobody other than Vicki, Leonard and Magnitude and nobody was really up to adding them to the group.

“Nope.” They all said in unison.

“Okay, great, we’ll stick with Dave for now and get back to that another time… other than that…” Frankie looked up and down the page in her notepad, making a ticking noise with her mouth. Jeff flicked his wrist to see the time, knowing that Frankie literally had no other ideas than expanding the new Improve Greendale Committee.

“…I actually don’t have any other suggestions.”

Jeff let out a relieved sigh, sitting up and looking around the table.

“Britta’s bar? Britta’s bar? Britta’s bar?... your bar?”


	11. Step Ten

When Jeff stepped through the door after another session at his therapist’s, he was met by the surprising sight of cardboard and bubble wrap; it was a big throwback to when he’d moved in during the summer.

Annie came out of another room carrying a box, startling herself a bit at Jeff standing in the room, his face slightly puzzled.

“Did we… talk about this?” He asked, Annie’s face dropping as if she’d done something terrible.

“Oh well I just… didn’t have anything to do so I just, you know…” She placed the box down, slipping her hands in to the back pockets of her jeans.

“Moved in?” Jeff said, his puzzled face changing into an amused one.

“I don’t know… I just…thought maybe?” Annie gulped, hoping she hadn’t read things wrong after Britta’s comment at the start of the week.

“No, you’re right, it makes sense.” Jeff stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her, pressing her cheek to his chest. Annie peeled away slightly to look up at him.

“I haven’t actually unpacked anything because I didn’t really know… I mean, we kind of skipped the whole moving in part.” She said, pointing the door of ‘her room’. Jeff nodded knowing what she meant.

“Yellow goes with pink, right?” He said, hinting towards mixing the décor in his room with hers. She tilted her head in thought, giving a little nod.

* * *

 

A couple of hours later, Annie’s few boxes were all unpacked, a few items going back into new ones to be stored away (mainly cushions and pillows because Annie had _a lot_ of them). Jeff looked around his place, noticing a few more feminine elements scattered around the place… usually he’d have something to say about the mix-match style of it all but for some reason he didn’t have any complaints. It actually felt really comforting to just stand there and take it all in… the fact that after everything they were now _living_ together.

As Jeff stood in a daze, Annie watched him, unsure of what he was thinking.

“Are you okay…?” She asked, her eyes still fixated on him from the kitchen. He snapped out of his daydream though, looking back at her, his hands on his hips.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“I thought you didn’t want to be fine.” Annie said as she bent down to a kitchen cabinet, her voice dropping as she folded her body over. Jeff laughed under his breath, wondering over to the kitchen counter to peer over and see what she was doing.

“I didn’t want to be fine without you.” He admitted, watching her eyes twinkle with a smile as she stood back up, before walking around to him and clasping her hands behind his neck, her finger nails scratching his skin slightly. Annie let out a little ‘hmm’ noise, before reaching up and joining their lips together.

“Eeeep!” She squealed as Jeff lifted her off the ground, her legs wrapping around his waist. As Jeff moved across the living room, their breathing got faster and their skin warmer and flushed with a pink glow… Jeff’s hands running up Annie’s back underneath her sweater.

“I think…” Annie spoke as their lips parted slightly, “…we should… uh…” she hummed against his lips, “…go and be fine together.”

“Yeah, sounds…” Jeff pushed her up to support her weight on him, before finishing his sentence, “like a… good plan.”

* * *

 

For the next fortnight or so, each week was pretty normal; from Monday to Wednesday, Annie worked at the FBI offices and for Thursday and Friday she dropped in a few classes at Greendale whilst helping out with the committee. It was easy and simple, each day fitting in with a routine that both her and Jeff had made work… it went something a little bit like this…

“Morning.” Jeff said, pressing a kiss down on Annie’s temple after turning off the seven o’clock alarm. Annie smiled with closed eyes, wriggling a bit to nuzzle into Jeff’s side. A few moments later, Jeff got out of bed, slipping into the bathroom to get dressed (into work out gear) as Annie did the same. If Jeff timed it perfectly, he could creep out after finishing up, and slip his hands around her waist before she covered up in a sports t-shirt. Today he did indeed perfectly time it, wrapping both arms around her from behind. Annie rolled her eyes, squirming away with a giggling smile.

Jeff never really thought he’d want a running partner but the fact that it was Annie and the fact that every now and again she’d ‘treat’ him by not wearing a t-shirt and simply going with a sports bra, made it all worthwhile.

Breakfast consisted of whatever Jeff managed to pick up (usually some sort of healthy granola that Annie wasn’t particularly a fan of), sitting on the arm chair together, Annie with her legs up over the arms.

“I need to go; I’m going to be late!” Annie said as Jeff pulled her in for a kiss by the front door. Jeff sighed in defeat, letting her walk outside. She’d decided that getting on a bus to work would fit better around Jeff’s classes so she walked her way down the street as Jeff climbed into his Lexus, his coat and sunglasses on.

Depending in what mood Britta was in, depended on whether Jeff got grilled about his life with Annie, especially when she wasn’t around.

“How’s life in Annie world?” Today was one of those days.

“I don’t know; why don’t you ask her?” Jeff said, sliding down opposite Britta at a cafeteria table. Britta rolled her eyes, picking up her water and taking a sip.

“Err, you suck.”

“Why do you even care?”

“I don’t care… I’ve said before, you’re my friends and I only see her twice a week so you know, ‘gossip’.”

“Gossip? Where are you, high school? Plus, aren’t you the one who always goes on about invasion of privacy and all that?” Jeff said, his mouth half full of food.

“I am but again, _friends._ ”

“Yeah well friends don’t need to know _everything.”_ Jeff’s tone of voice had definitely shifted.

“Jeez, cranky.” Britta said, pulling a face.

“Fine, you want to know everything? We’re sleeping together, she likes _a lot_ of skin-to-skin contact and her boobs look great in a sports bra. See, you didn’t want to know all of that did you?” Jeff said, getting ready to stand up and walk away, Britta’s face pulled back in surprise.

“I didn’t realise you’d get so mad about me asking…” Britta mumbled.

“You want to know why? Because it’s the first time where it seems like I’m not actually screwing things up. Life is _great_ in Annie world and I don’t want you pressuring me about it.” Jeff said before walking away in haste.

“ _Sorry for asking…”_ Britta said to herself, her eyes still bulging in shock.

* * *

 

It was after that, that things started to change. Jeff suddenly realised that he really _wasn’t_ screwing things up and he wanted things to stay that way. It had been just over a month since Annie’s arrival back in Colorado, so for Jeff that was a big deal and he wanted to make sure that she knew he cared, even if it was subtle (or even if his actions were subconscious to him).

When Annie stepped through the door, Jeff stood up from the couch, a thin lipped smile across his face.

“Hey.” She said, smiling with a wave.

“Hey… err, do you want to go see a movie?” Annie’s eyebrows raised at his enthusiasm at the thought, seeing as she hadn’t had a chance to rest her feet for even a second.

“Err, right now?”

“Well you can go get changed or whatever but, yeah.” Annie nodded, unsure what the rush was, before agreeing and slipping into the bedroom to do just that.

At the cinema, they sat in the middle, Jeff sharing a smile with Annie every now and then during the start, before slipping his fingers into her free hand, clasping them together. It was weird… they’d been intimate together now in different ways but Annie noticed the way Jeff hesitated before doing it, as if it was a huge step forward for him. His thumb gently brushed against her skin as the screen flashed before them. Jeff’s hand stayed with Annie’s for the rest of the movie… although Annie was still slightly confused by his hesitation and how adamant he was to spend time together, she enjoyed it, smiling the whole time.

* * *

 

It wasn’t as if Jeff _completely_ changed over the course of the following days, but Annie definitely noticed a shift in the way he did things, like how when they fell asleep, his arms would almost immediately wrap around her, his fingers skimming under her pajama vest as he planted a kiss on the back of her neck. Again, she enjoyed it and wasn’t complaining but it was just… _different._

Even Britta started noticing it during a committee meeting when Jeff started displaying affection in front of everyone else (when they’d originally decided against it). As she stood up to hand out some papers (going from Jeff to Dave – who was officially a part of the group), he slipped a hand around her waist, his fingers lingering on her back for a while as she stood beside him. As she walked away, he lent his other elbow on the table, a hand over his face to hide his tiny smile.

_“What was that?”_ Britta said, leaning over toward him as Annie carried on handing things out.

“What?” Jeff said with a confused face.

_“That whole… hand around her waist thing?”_

“Ugh, you’re being pathological…”

_“I thought you decided against the whole PDA thing?”_

“Why are you jealous?” Jeff smirked.

_“No, don’t be gross.”_

So Jeff carried on doing it, mainly to antagonize Britta… just putting his hand across the table that little bit further towards Annie; nudging his shoe against Annie’s under the table… all very simple subtle things to let her know he cared because that’s all Jeff wanted to do; show that he could do it, because if nothing was going wrong, something was _bound_ to go wrong soon, right?

* * *

 

At the end of the week as they stood in the kitchen together, stirring around their cups of coffee, Annie decided to just mention it – see if he was okay… just in case.

“Can I ask you a question?” She said, pushing up against the counter next to Jeff.

“Err… should be I worried about this?” He said, looking down at her.

“No, I just… you seem pretty… _clingy_ recently and it’s not necessarily a bad thing but I just wanted to make sure you were okay…?” Annie said, looking up to Jeff with questioning eyes. Jeff gulped. _Just tell her the truth,_ he thought. So he did, taking a deep breath beforehand.

“Nothing’s gone wrong… I haven’t screwed up that I know of and I guess I just want you to know… that I’m trying my best not too.” He admitted, making Annie scrunch her face up at the ridiculousness of it.

“Err Jeff… you haven’t done _anything_ wrong and you don’t need to prove that. That’s crazy.”

“This is the first time I haven’t screwed something like this up… for a _really_ long time. And it’s… _you._ I don’t want to lose you. I mean, how are you still putting up with me?” Jeff’s eyebrow twitched as he opened up. Annie pouted slightly at him, realising he really was trying his best because he was so scared of failing.

“That’s really crazy talk Jeff, seriously. I don’t want to lose you either because… you’re _you._ Don’t you remember that time when we both went at each other for that stupid student government? I’m also trying my hardest not to screw things up because that’s why people do this, right? Because they want it to work? If you set out for failure, then you probably will fail. But you’re not, so don’t think that you are.” Annie said, gesturing with one arm crossed. Jeff looked back at her, his eyes deep with meaning.

“Do you want to spend the rest of your life with me?” He clenched his teeth as he asked it. Annie’s face stretched back slightly, her heart fluttering. _I don’t know… I think so? No… that is crazy talk!_

“I… yeah… of course I do.” Jeff bit his lip… he still hadn’t got passed the guilt part of their relationship but he had to be honest, going back to therapy was helping. He was now open to accepting that she wanted that to.

“And you don’t care that I’m… older?” Jeff asked, looking away a bit so he didn’t see Annie’s face turn into a confused one again.

“What? Of course not… I’ve never thought that… okay it comes with _some_ complications but it’s mainly about other people… so, no, of course not.” Jeff smiled a bit, thinking of another ridiculous question.

“Even though you used to say I was your uncle?” His smile was now an embarrassed grin. Annie rolled her eyes with a smile too.

“I said it like _twice_ because some girls thought we were dating.” Jeff grinned some more, stepping away from the counter, his face down a little.

“See, we were meant to be, huh?” Annie said, stretching up on her tippy toes to him. Jeff laughed under his breath, leaning forward to meet her.

“Yeah.”

“I love you.” Annie said quietly.

“Love you too.”


	12. Step Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Sorry for so much dialogue in this one but it was the only thing that felt right... also, sorry for the name change for Jeff's mom/mum... I read somewhere that it wasn't actually Doreen but it seems I was wrong after reading the Community WIKI again... oh well!)

Annie was doing some work on her laptop at the kitchen table whilst Jeff lounged on the couch with some papers from his class when he got a phone call. Annie couldn’t hear the person on the other end of course, she was just left with Jeff’s answers to work it out from…

“Hey… yeah I know, I’m sorry, just been busy… wait, you’re coming here?... this weekend? Wait that’s like in two days… no, it’s not, I just, we haven’t spoken in a while… yeah it should be… no you won’t be disturbing me, well us, actually… I am… Annie… yeah, she is…” Jeff looked back at Annie who was also looking back at him, flashing his eyebrows up as he said her name, “…not that long… yeah well like I said, I’ve been busy… I will be… so, Saturday?... I will… okay… yes… you too… see you soon, bye.”

Annie was still sort of confused, her face scrunched up as Jeff stood and stretched himself out.

“That… was my mom, and she’s coming to stay for the weekend. Should be… interesting.” He said, scratching the back of his head.

“Oh, well, I’m sure it will be fine, I mean, you do talk to her, right?” Annie clasped her hands on the back of her chair.

“Err… well, kind of. She knows I’m at Greendale now… just not the teacher part and she now knows about you… so… like I said, should be interesting.”

“Jeff! How could you not have told her about you being a teacher? This will be your third year…”

“Hahah-, yeah, don’t rub it in.” Jeff smiled and dropped it suddenly to emphasise his point, to which Annie just rolled her eyes back.

“Oh come on, you like teaching… you’re just too scared to admit it.” Jeff puffed out his cheeks as he sat back down.

“Oh hang on, that means we can’t go on our date on Saturday… hm.” Annie hummed disappointedly, thinking over when they could re-schedule.

“We could go Friday?” Jeff said, rubbing Annie’s shoulders as she returned to facing her laptop.

“Can’t do Friday remember? I’m not at Greendale because there’s a dinner for people at work and I can’t miss it!” She said, looking up behind her.

“Oh yeah… we could go tonight? It’s only seven now? …and then we could come home…” Jeff said, planting a kiss on Annie’s shoulder where her hair was brushed away.

“I can’t, I have work to do, and if I don’t do it now, I never will! So, we’ll just go next week and we’ll stay in with your mom this weekend.” Jeff sighed.

“What’s your mom’s name again?”

“Doreen.”

“Well I’m sure she’s very nice.” Annie said, her back to Jeff who was sighing again.

“Better than my dad that’s for sure.”

“At least you have a mom who still cares about you…” Jeff didn’t really know what to say about that, so he just pouted, putting a coffee down by Annie’s laptop. When he looked at her though, he realised that it must have been pretty bad to be left by your own mother, going through a pill addiction at such a young age. So he kissed her on the temple and got back to his work… it was going to be a _very_ interesting weekend.

* * *

 

“What are you cooking for your _mom_ then?” Annie said, sat up in bed on Saturday morning.

“Cooking? I thought we’d just go out for dinner.” Jeff replied, looking to his right, his hair scruffy and making Annie hold in a giggle at its state.

“Jeff, you can’t go out for dinner… you _have_ to cook.”

“Ugh, why?” Jeff said, laughing under his breath a little.

“Because! It’s your mom, and she’ll probably be expecting a home cooked meal… I’ll cook it if you really want.” Annie turned on her side, her cleavage deepening just enough for Jeff to need to look away.

“I can’t make _you_ cook, that’s as bad as going out.”

“She’ll never know… I make good salmon you know; you should try it some time.” Annie said, leaning forward to grab her blouse from the end of the bed. As she did though, Jeff stretched out behind her, curling his neck around to see her from the front. She rolled her eyes, flattening her hair down, trying to distract herself from Jeff’s own ‘cleavage’ that was being made by his impeccable torso.

“We’ll do half.” Jeff suggested, laying right back down, his arms behind his head.

“You should probably get dressed too seeing as you _still_ don’t know what time she’s coming.”

 _“You should probably get dressed too…_ blah blah bla-.” Jeff mimicked Annie before scraping his hands through her hair and pulling her in for a breathless kiss that she _definitely_ responded too. Annie’s fingers dug into the back of Jeff’s shoulders as his own hands slipped up her top, making her even more breathless than she alrea-.

*DING DONG*

Jeff’s eyes opened and bulged, his hands quickly sliding down Annie’s back as she scrambled out of bed, pulling on some pants and brushing down her hair.

“Crap, this room is a mess.”

“Ugh, and who’s fault is that?” Annie said, running into the living room to clear away any last minute messes.

“It really didn’t seem a problem to you last night…!” Jeff called into the other room as he chucked mustard and pink pillows all over the place in an attempt to make the place look half decent.

“Jeff what happens if she thinks we’re out?”

“My car’s outside dummy!”

“Err, does she even know what car you have?” Jeff moaned at the last question before slipping on a sweater, spiking up his hair, pecking Annie on the lips and finally, opening up the door to his mom.

“Darling!” Doreen stepped forward, receiving a one armed hug from Jeff before stepping back and admiring Annie from arm’s length. Annie just smiled politely back.

“Ooooh, how lovely to meet you, you must be Annie?”

“That’s me!” Annie laughed a bit before accepting her own hug. Jeff stood back, giving a thin lipped smile to the two of them, placing a hand on Annie’s back before shutting the door closed.

“Ooooh, I love what you’ve done with the place Jeffrey.” Doreen said, looking back at Jeff who was still standing around by the door.

“Yeah Annie’s a bit of an enabler in certain departments.” He said, smirking at Annie a little.

“Annie, come show me around.” Annie mouthed an ‘oh, sure’ at Jeff’s mom, leaving him to make coffee. It was slightly odd for Jeff, it wasn’t as if him and Annie had planned to get ‘serious’ all of a sudden, but it was just the way things worked out really.

A few minutes later they were all sat in the living room, Annie next to Doreen and Jeff over in his arm chair, nervously watching on at two of the most important women in his life.

“So you two, you met at… Greendale, was it? _Jeff’s terrible at keeping me up to date with these things.”_ Doreen said, covering her mouth towards Annie for the last part.

“He is…” Annie said to which Jeff shot her a disapproving look.

“Hey! I’m not that bad.”

“But in answer to your question, yes… we met at Greendale where Jeff now _teaches…_ he’s too ‘insecure’ to admit it though.”

“What the hell?” Jeff shrieked, but smiling all the same. Annie just shrugged finding it kind of funny at how defensive he was being.

“Jeffrey, you have to tell me these things. I’m not your father, I do actually care.” Jeff sighed.

“Okay well, fine. I’ve been teaching at Greendale for two years doing Fundamentals of Law because my return to _being_ a lawyer was kind of crappy.”

“Oh darling…”

“He _also_ won’t admit this… that he’s actually _really_ good at it.”

“No I’m not, I went through a whole semester of showing Planet Earth at any possible opportunity.”

“See!” Annie said, gesturing towards him. Doreen just laughed.

“But what about this? When did you start err, dating?” Doreen said, hesitating to find the right word for it.

“Err… well we’ve known each other for six years, so… there’s that, but we didn’t really start _this_ until the end of summer.”

“Why did it take you so long?!” Doreen asked in surprise. Jeff’s eyes widened at the question, not too sure where the conversation was heading.

Jeff just brushed his face and crossed his leg over the other as Annie managed a ‘mmm’.

“What about your first kiss?” Annie accidentally let out another high pitch noise, coughing afterwards to cover it up. Jeff shuffled in his seat, but then just thought, _what the heck?_

“You really want to know?” Jeff lent forward.

“Oh god…” Annie rolled her eyes.

“Well I do now that you’ve said that!” Doreen chuckled. So Jeff stood up, brought out his phone and zoomed into an image of a frame that hung on his office wall.

“That is from right after _Annie_ kissed me, when she made me be part of her debate team. I got a free parking space, she got her dreams come true.” Jeff said, grinning with a wink.

“I’m not quite sure it was my dream come true Jeff, I did it to _win._ ” Annie said as Doreen peered at Jeff’s phone screen, looking at Jeff’s dumbfounded face.

“So, you had to kiss Jeffrey to win a competition?” Jeff sat back down with his phone, laughing under his breath at the picture.

“Well… I didn’t have to but it kind of just happened to work in our favour… but that was a _long_ time ago.”

“Well by Jeff’s face in that picture it looks like he thoroughly enjoyed it!” Doreen chuckled again with a wink, making Jeff sit up as he rolled his eyes.

“So then what?” Doreen asked, looking between them both.

“Well…” Annie began to speak but didn’t really know what she was trying to say.

“I was a big jerk and didn’t tell Annie how I felt for like the next five years until now, so yeah.” Doreen sat back, looking satisfied with the answer, sipping at her coffee.

“What are you doing though Annie? You must be finished with college now?” Annie sat forward herself, ready to answer as best as she could.

“Oh well, I’m working part time at the Colorado FBI offices, which is pretty exciting… but in my spare time I’m actually back at Greendale again to boost myself with a few more credits and help out with the well… _Improve_ Greendale Committee… it was the Save Greendale Committee before but… we kind of saved it.” Annie said, looking towards Jeff happily.

“Oh do tell!” Doreen sat forward again, listening to Annie tell the story… it was all fine until she got to the Subway story. Jeff gulped.

“So then…” Annie took a breath, looking back at a completely confused Doreen, “…Jeff put on these weird headphones that _apparently_ could recognise human emotion and he unlocked the door… so basically without Jeff, we wouldn’t have saved Greendale.” Jeff gulped again, concealing it with a smile.

“Aww well that’s sweet.” Doreen said, looking towards Jeff with bright eyes. _Say it dummy,_ he thought.

“Err… well, actually that’s only partly true. If Annie hadn’t had been there those doors wouldn’t have opened either…” Jeff finally started to admit it, clenching down on his teeth, his eyes locked with Annie’s. That’s when it hit Annie… that’s when it started to become clear as to why Jeff always shied away from the topic of Borchert’s Lab. She looked back at him, her bottom lip dropping open slightly.

“When I looked at Annie…” Jeff gestured with his hands, opening them up like doors, “…they opened up.” Annie’s eyebrows twisted, her mouth still open just a little bit. Doreen watched them, looking how tightly locked their eye line really was. Jeff’s heart was racing, his palms going slightly clammy. He attempted a smile and as he did, there was no going back as the curve of his mouth curled upwards even more. Annie smiled back too, doing her ‘Jeff smile’.

“You’re going to make me cry Jeffrey.” Doreen said, wiping below her eye where a literal tear had started to form.

“Okay, that’s enough of that. We should, go out and… yeah.” Jeff said, standing up to wipe his hands along his thighs. Annie did the same, twisting around on the spot like a teenage girl with a crush, before Jeff slipped his arm around her, pulling her in for a hug, resting his cheek on her hair.

 _“You have no idea how hard it was not to tell you that.”_ Jeff whispered as Doreen popped into the loo (even though she really didn’t need it – she just wanted to leave them alone after that big revelation).

Annie pulled away and smiled back up at him.

“Jeff Winger, Annie Edison’s big goofy idiot circa 2009.”

“Pretty much.”

* * *

 

After a dinner of Annie’s salmon (that went down a treat) later in the evening, Jeff pecked Annie on the lips before letting her slip off to bed for the chance to have a Mother/Son conversation for the first time in forever. He sat down with her in the spare room, feeling pretty content with the whole day.

“You really love her don’t you?” Doreen said and without even thinking Jeff was already responding.

“Yeah, I do.”

“She looks like she’s very smitten with you too.”

“I’d hope so.” Jeff laughed under his breath, looking away from his mom for a second.

“Have you thought about your future… marriage, kids…?” Jeff looked away again, his faint smile fading in thought.

“Yeah… but I’m not really sure _I’m_ ready for that yet, let alone Annie.”

“Jeffrey, your… forty-one, of course you’re ready.”

“Yeah well she’s not.”

“Have you asked her?” Jeff gulped.

“No…”

“Then how do you know?”

“Because I think I know whether my girlfriend of literally one month is ready to get _married_ and have kids.”

“You’ve known her for six years, what are you waiting for?” Doreen said, shaking her head a little bit.

“It’s not that simple…. Like I said, _I’m_ not ready.” Jeff shifted on the end of the bed, looking to the floor, trying hard not to think of it all too much.

“If this is because of your father and I then that’s crazy Jeffrey… your father and I didn’t have a perfect marriage but it doesn’t mean you should stop yourself from having one.” Jeff clenched on his teeth, squinting up at the ceiling.

“If it were me, I’d be holding that girl close and starting a life with her, no matter how old she is. She might be younger but who cares, if you both love each other than what’s stopping you?”

“She’s dropped enough already, she could be in DC right now or in Quantico at some fancy school but instead she’s here, with me, and I’m not going to go and change her life any more than I already have.”

“Wasn’t that her decision?” _Dammit,_ Jeff thought, realising that the guilt really still hadn’t gone.

“Yeah.” There was a lull in conversation as Doreen scanned Jeff’s face.

“You’ve thought about it though, haven’t you? The perfect life with her…” Jeff gritted his teeth some more, really wishing he could just be asleep right now rather than in the midst of a conversation about things he already knew.

“I’ve never seen someone smile at someone else the way you smile at Annie… and I’ve never seen someone smile back the way Annie smiles at you… make the right decision of course but think about it.”


	13. Five Times Jeff Thought About Getting Married

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A "five times" style chapter describing the times Jeff thought about getting married...

**1.**

The first time he really thought about it after his Mother/Son chat was when Britta started talking about a wedding invite she’d received for a distant cousin. It was stupid really, but he was left slightly speechless and in a daze.

“Ugh, I got this stupid invite to a wedding of a cousin I don’t even know and my parents are insisting I go so I can ‘improve my social skills’… who do they think I am? I’m thirty-four years old, I’ve been to weddings, I might hate them, but who cares?” Britta said as they waited for Frankie to arrive at the committee meeting.

“I’m not really sure any of us can talk about weddings Britta… _Garrett’s wedding…_ ” Annie whispered over to Britta, gesturing with her hands.

“Ugh, but come on, that wedding was a shambles anyway.”

“Britta!” Annie said, looking over to Jeff who was rocking back on his chair. _Annie’s definitely not ready,_ he thought. _She can’t be, she’s only just started a new job, I can’t propose now,_ he thought again. _I’m not ready, I hate weddings and marriage too… stop thinking about it._

“Ooooh, are you talking about Garrett’s wedding? He married his cousin, right?” Annie and Britta nodded back at Dave, turning to Jeff again, surprised that he wasn’t making any input.

 _“What’s up with him?”_ Britta mouthed, nudging her head and thumb towards Jeff. Annie shrugged, watching Jeff blink away in his own little bubble.

“Mr Winger…” Dave said curiously. Jeff immediately jolted forward, his chair landing firmly back on all four legs.

“Huh? Yeah? What?” He said frantically, looking over to Dave and Annie.

“Are you okay…?” Annie said, holding a hand over the table.

“Yeah, yeah. Is Frankie here yet?” Jeff asked, looking around the room.

“No…” Annie looked over at Britta, shrugging a bit again.

“Okay, sorry I’m late!” Frankie burst into the room, taking her seat next to Dave.

 _Thank the lord,_ Jeff thought to himself.

* * *

 

**2.**

The second time it happened was when himself and Annie decided to go out on a walk one afternoon to get some coffee, and of course she had to wear a _white_ dress for the casual occasion. It wasn’t anything fancy, just a long sleeved skater dress with a few lacy kind of details here and there, covered up with a navy blazer to match her little navy flats. Jeff stood by the doorway as she grabbed her bag, looking at her with wide eyes.

 _Crap, you would look good in a wedding dress…_ he thought… _and I would look good in a tux…_

“Ready?” She said, pointing to the door he was holding open, but he didn’t respond for a few seconds, still looking down at her in admiration.

“Earth to Jeff…” She said, clicking her fingers in front of his face.

“Huh? Yeah, sure.” Jeff grinned slightly to enthusiastically, earning a confused face back from Annie.

 _Okay, weirdo,_ Annie thought, adding that to the list of times he’d looked rather spaced out recently.

* * *

 

**3.**

It happened once more when they went out on errands one day, Annie popping into the bank to fill out a form; the day already feeling very ‘coupily’…

“Okay can I have your full name please.”

“Err, sure, it’s Miss… Annie… Edison…” the lady at the desk filled in the paper, looking up at Jeff thinking the exact same thing as him… _Miss._

“I hope you don’t mind me saying but I’d hope that would change to _Mrs_ sometime soon… you two look like a lovely couple.” Jeff gulped. _Of course you had to say that._ Annie smiled with raised eyebrows, acknowledging the comment but not really reacting.

The reason Annie didn’t feel like reacting though was mainly because it didn’t seem _so_ weird anymore… okay getting married to Jeff after almost only two months would be a bit extreme, but it wasn’t as if she’d go running for the hills screaming. They lived together, they _slept_ together, they ate together, they worked together and now that Annie thought of it… they _ran_ together, so it would feel weird to go off running without him by her side. Annie sighed… and Jeff noticed.

_What’s that supposed to mean?_

* * *

 

**4.**

“What are you doing?” Jeff said from the couch as he flicked through his phone one Sunday evening.

“Hmm? Oh, I’m just changing one of my frames.” Annie said, taking the backing from one, slipping out a picture and swapping in a new one.

“What’s the picture?” Jeff said, sitting up some more to inspect it as she held it up between her fingers.

“It’s from when we all went to that err, ‘InSpecTiCon’ thing… well, when we were _meant_ to have gone skiing…” Annie said, as she clicked the frame back into place. Jeff gulped, clearly remembering that day with all its weirdness.

“Gas leak year.” He said, without thinking. It wasn’t as if that year was terrible but some things did seem extra weird, especially that day and Annie’s craziness… but he couldn’t really talk now, he was the obsessive one doing all the future thinking.

“Oh yeah, huh. Maybe that’s why you know… I threw scotch in your face…” Annie said, folding her lips in as she thought about it.

“And now we have to have a reminder of it all day, every day…” Jeff said, tilting his head slightly.

“Hey, you’re the one living with me now, so you can’t really talk.” Annie smiled, wondering over near to the couch.

“That is… true.” _Very true, in fact, so true, why don’t we just get married?!_ Jeff blurted in his brain, panicking slightly afterwards, wondering if he’d actually said the words out loud.

* * *

 

**5.**

Jeff was in his office, sipping on a scotch (that was actually quite rare to see now-a-days), when for some reason he got an urge to browse the web on his phone and look up something very specific. He pouted before typing it in, looking up and remembering the time Annie had stuck out his tongue at him, him doing the same thing back. He smiled, then finally typed the search in realising that’s what he wants every day; to see her smiling and acting like a fool, because _he can._

_Searches > Today > “Engagement rings”_

He flicked through several pages, when he stumbled across one that for some reason stood out to him. It was tiny and simple, and perhaps a [pretty classic engagement ring](http://www.diamonds-usa.com/images/thumbs/0309342.JPEG), but it seemed pretty princessy to him, and for Jeff… Annie was definitely his princess with her ridiculous eyes. He sighed, realising that he really needed to think this through.

He couldn’t talk to Annie because if he was going to go ahead he’d want it to be a surprise; he couldn’t talk to Britta because she’d probably go insane with the idea; he couldn’t talk with Frankie because he was pretty certain she disapproved with them even kissing; he definitely wasn’t going to talk to Craig or Chang… but then he realised; he had Abed.

So he rang him, and on the third attempt, he picked up.

“Hey Abed, it’s Jeff…” He said hesitantly, waiting for a response.

“Hey Jeff, I’m on my lunch break now so you can talk. How are you?” Jeff pulled a face at how normal Abed seemed over the phone…

“Err, good… so I don’t know whether this is a good time but you always, _somehow,_ seem to be a good person to talk to…”

“Cool.”

“…you were… kind of right about Annie and I…” Jeff chewed on his lip.

“Cool, if you’re going to tell me, don’t worry – Britta already did. I know that you’re living together because Annie got a job in Colorado, which is good but I’m not sure whether I count it as progression or regression, I mean, on the one hand, you and Annie finally getting together would be a lot of progression but Annie coming back to Greendale, well, regression, obviously.” Jeff sighed.

“Thanks Abed…”

“Sorry, I’m just saying what’s there. What did you want to talk about again?” Jeff thought twice before answering, but went ahead anyway.

“I was… kind of thinking about… maybe…”

“Proposing?” Jeff gulped in shock.

“How the…”

“It would be a natural step really; you’ve known each other for six years, you’re living and quite probably sleeping together,” _Good job Britta left out that detail_ , Jeff thought, “so the next big milestone would be to get married even if it does seem too soon in some cases. But, if you’re going to ask me about whether Annie would say yes… I don’t know. I’m not good at that sort of stuff because she could do a few things… run away forever, say no but maybe sometime in the future, or say yes without hesitation.”

Jeff paused before responding, but his pause was prolonged when Abed carried on.

“If it were a classic rom-com scenario, you’d end this phone call and propose right now but it seems like you’ve been thinking about this for a while which shows that you’re probably more afraid of what might happen than she is.”

“Probably.” Jeff said… with perfect timing too as Annie peeped into his office, her bag in hand and her coat already on.

“You’ve stopped talking so I have a feeling that she’s there with you now.” Jeff smiled, looking away to finish up his phone call.

“You’re freaking me out.” Jeff said, making Annie pull a confused face.

“Okay well good luck.” Abed said calmly.

“Yeah, think I’m going to need it.” Jeff put the phone down, sighed and smiled back at Annie who was peering over some papers on the desk.

“Ready?”

“Yeah, I think so.”


	14. Step Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Angst and a lot of mushy-mushy but I hope you like it!)

Well, maybe not quite.

“I’m thinking of getting a new car… I wrote my old one off before going to DC because I knew it wasn’t worth keeping anymore but seeing as it looks like I’m staying here, I feel like I probably should.” Annie said before they slipped off to bed, a week or so after Jeff’s online engagement ring window shopping session.

“What do you mean by ‘seeing as’?” Jeff said, putting his coffee down after taking a sip.

“Well, I’m here aren’t I? So… I should probably get one.” Annie said, wondering why Jeff was asking such a specific question.

“Okay but when you say ‘seeing as’, it seems like you don’t _want_ to be here…” Jeff looked up at Annie curiously.

“What? No it doesn’t?”

“Okay well why do you need one for three days of the week? You come with me to Greendale and get on a bus at the start of the week, so…?” Jeff asked, still curious.

“Because I could probably afford one with all the money on bus fares.”

“Okay well what car would you get?” The tension started to rise even though the questions being asked were fairly simple. Annie sat straight, trying not to get too worked up over it.

“I don’t know, one that I can afford… which will probably be a three-wheeler currently.” Annie stirred her coffee around at the thought.

“Well wouldn’t you rather stay on the bus than get another crappy car?”

“I’d rather have my own car than stay on _that_ bus… I’m all about public transport but it kind of sucks turning up at the FBI with all their fancy cars, without one… plus, it’s not like _you’d_ ever let me drive yours.” Annie said, standing up and pouring the last few dregs of coffee down the sink. Jeff jolted his head back at the comment, rolling his head around before responding.

“Err, have you ever asked?” Jeff lent back to look at her in the kitchen.

“Oh come on Jeff, there is _no_ way you would ever let me… and there is _no_ way that you would walk into work every morning.”

“That’s not true, if you don’t ask, you’ll never get.” _Definitely won’t be asking her that other question right now…_ he thought to himself.

“Jeff you wouldn’t let me touch your car with a ten-foot pole.”

“Err, who was the guy who didn’t get mad at you for hitting it?” Jeff said, throwing up his arms whilst poking his tongue to side of his mouth.

“That’s not the point – the point is that you are a materialistic person and you wouldn’t trust me to drive your car.”

Jeff scoffed at the comment, leaning his neck back to the ceiling.

“What was that?” Annie said, crossing her arms from the other side of the room.

“I’m not materialistic.”

“Err, who was the guy who wouldn’t lend me his jacket for more than thirty seconds at a party because he was ‘too scared of getting it dirty’?” Jeff gulped, he couldn’t argue with that one, but he could fight back. He pushed away from the table to stand up, crossing his owns arms back at her.

“If I was a materialistic person, I wouldn’t have let you put half of the things you have in this place.” Annie’s mouth dropped open slightly, genuinely shocked by his comment.

“Huh! Okay, I am _sleeping in the spare room!_ ” Annie said comically, pushing past Jeff. Jeff looked back up at the ceiling again as she did so, clenching his teeth and swallowing.

“Annie…”

“No, maybe it’s good that we’re ‘fighting’… you should know that seeing as you’re the world’s biggest believer in every relationship being a failure.” Annie said with a raised voice, using her fingers as quotation marks around the word ‘fighting’ as it was hardly a fight… more like a tension build up.

Jeff sighed and let her go, leaving them both to fall asleep alone, both of them thinking the same thing… that it felt weird not having the other person right by their side.

* * *

 

The next morning Jeff checked in Annie’s room but her bed was made and the bathroom was empty, and it was clear by the cereal bowl in the sink that she’d already left for the day… the point was made even clearer by Annie sending him a message just so he knew she was safe, even if she was still mad at him.

 _ANNIE:_ Already at Greendale – had some things to finish anyway.

So Jeff drove to campus alone too, another thing that felt so wrong to do alone after the month and half of doing it together. Annie had obviously made it her aim to ignore Jeff for the day until she couldn’t any longer at the committee meeting. Frankie was late again which added even more to the tension as Britta started to scrutinise them.

“Are you two… fighting?” Britta said with squinting eyes.

“No…” Annie said calmly.

“Then why isn’t Jeff facing you? _You always do…_ ” Britta poked at Jeff’s arm in suspicion.

“Fine.” Jeff said, turning in his chair, keeping his eyes straight ahead.

“Look at her…” Britta said, using her ‘psych major’ voice. Jeff did so, turning his head to look at Annie who he had to admit actually looked _extremely_ beautiful even with a grumpy face. He slowly turned back around, his body still in Annie’s direction.

“I’m just going to say that I really hope Frankie arrives soon because this is kind of awkward…” Dave said, looking towards Jeff.

“Shut up Dave.” Jeff blurted, pulling out his phone.

“Err, Mr Winger, I don’t think you’re allowed to say shut up to students.”

“Shut up Dave.” So Dave did. As Annie watched on her fidgeting became apparent as she boiled over in the awkwardness, also hoping that Frankie would arrive soon.

A few minutes later when Frankie still hadn’t arrived, she finally burst.

“Okay, this is ridiculous. I’m going.” Annie stood up, her face becoming flushed as she stormed out of the room. Jeff nodded his head forward as she left, trying not to react.

“Aren’t you meant to…” Britta suggested.

“What?” Jeff shot his head back up.

“…go…?” Britta gestured with her hands towards the door.

“No?” Jeff shrugged, but as he did so, his signal to change that answer to a yes, _walked_ through the door.

“Dean dong.”

“Okay, ignore that. Yes.” Jeff pushed away from his seat and walked out. This was going to be interesting…

* * *

 

A while later, Jeff found Annie working on her laptop at home. He slowly crept inside, hanging his coat up and taking off his shoes before walking over and leaning against the wall. He inhaled before speaking…

“I’m sorry for being a jerk and saying what I said… you were probably right, I probably wouldn’t have let you drive my car but… if you need to, you can, I’m fine with that. Of course I’d _rather_ it didn’t get bumped or scratched but I can stop that from happening… I guess if we’re going to do this then a lot of things that used to be mine, now have to start being _ours._ So… I’m sorry.” Jeff said, watching her face change as she pulled away from her screen.

“I’m sorry too… I shouldn’t have got angry over something so… stupid. I mean, seriously, I will get mad over _anything._ But… I still think I’m going to get one, I might even rent one of those new ones… do you forgive me?” Annie said with twisted eyebrows, looking up at Jeff who stood over her. Jeff smirked a little, as she asked…

“Of course I do… you didn’t do anything wrong. Maybe you were right… maybe we did just need to fight it out, huh?” Annie laughed on her breath, standing up to wrap her little arms around him, his chin resting on her hair.

“I’m also _kind_ of hormonal right now so I _probably_ got crabby quicker than usual… sorry ‘bout that.” Annie said looking up at him with an embarrassed eye roll.

“Ah…” Jeff said, nodding his head a little bit.

“Do you, err, need anything?” He said, looking down at her with a smile.

“This is going to sound _really_ cliché but I could actually do with some chocolate…” Jeff laughed under his breath himself this time, smiling goofily.

“Wow.”

“Please?” She said with pleading eyes.

“For mi’lady.”

* * *

 

When Jeff got back home from the late-night shop, he found Annie in _their_ bed, her laptop at the foot, a TV show waiting to be played and that’s when it clicked. Jeff bit his lip as his heart started fluttering like a nervous school boy all over again. He smiled at her, perching on the edge of the bed, bringing out his purchases.

“Chocolate…” he nodded, passing her two different bars (mainly because he wasn’t a hundred percent what she preferred but also because he was scared with her hormonal self she’d eat one bar straight back before sharing).

“A drink…” Annie’s eyes perked up at a wine bottle as he lay it down on the bed.

“Oooh fancy…” She said, noticing Jeff’s hand shaking a bit but not mentioning it.

“I also… err, got you something else.” Annie’s eyes softened as she mouthed another ‘Ooooh’ in intrigue. He scratched his head, slipping his other hand into his pocket.

“I err, don’t know what you’re going to think but…” Jeff swallowed again, making Annie lean forward some more, “…for _some_ reason, right now feels like the time to…” His hand was definitely shaking now, a lump growing in his throat. “…do it… err, you don’t have to… say yes, and you’ll probably think I’m crazy but… I…” Annie’s face was now one of complete confusion yet understanding all at the same time.

“…I _want_ you to say yes, so… yeah…” Jeff said, looking away quickly as he pulled a small box out of his pocket. As he brought it out in front of him, his heart started beating even quicker as Annie suddenly realised what he was doing. Her eyebrows furrowed as her mind raced and her breath hitched in her throat.

“I know I… panicked before but… this is for _real_ this time.” Annie opened her mouth, letting out a shaky breath she’d been holding in. They both looked at each other, their expressions fairly similar; shocked and understanding and somewhere in there… a hint of happiness and love. Annie looked down at the box in Jeff’s shaking hand, before looking back up.

 _“Yeah…”_ Annie whispered shakily. Jeff clenched his teeth, still not one hundred percent sure if he’d heard her correctly.

“ _Yeah… I will._ ” Annie whispered again, her lips twitching into a smile. Jeff lent his neck back, looking up and letting out a sigh of relief.

“ _Oh god…_ ” He mumbled, looking back down and staring wide eyed, his own face turning into a smiling one. As they looked at each other it, the next few moments became inevitable. Annie leaned forward as Jeff did too, his hand brushing against her cheek as their lips met, sharing a soft, loving kiss that should have happened years ago.

When they parted, they just smiled and laughed at each other, Jeff looking as love struck as he had back after their big debate kiss. Annie held out her hand though, reminding Jeff that he still had to finish off the job. He pulled out the ring and slid it onto her finger, looking up at Annie whose eyes were glistening.

“I may have had many panic engagements but I have never actually put a ring on a finger.” He said, looking back at Annie how was smiling giddily.

“You’re going to marry _me…_ ” She said, scrunching up her face.

“ _Oh god, what I have done?!_ ” Jeff joked, his laugh being cut off by another kiss with Annie’s hands around his neck. When she lay back down to look at her ring, she looked back at him with her ‘Jeff smile’.

“Can we have some chocolate and watch TV?” Jeff sat back down, laughing at the question.

“Only for you…”


	15. Step Thirteen

“So what are we saying again?” Annie said as Jeff pulled up into his faculty parking spot. Jeff turned to her, a smile creeping across his face, remembering the fact that _they were engaged to be married._ Annie rolled her eyes at him.

“Stop smiling!” She said, whacking him playfully on the arm.

“Oh jeez, okay, I can’t even smile anymore.” His face dropped as he ran his fingers through his hair.

“But… we just don’t mention it and if anyone notices…” Jeff said, hinting towards Annie’s ring, “…we’ll tell them, okay?” Annie nodded in agreement, rubbing her ring finger slightly.

“Have I told you how pretty it is?” She said, waving her hand at him.

“Yes, about a _thousand_ times.” He said, pulling a face.

“What? You should be glad I like it so much.” 

“Well I am; I’m just making sure you know I’m still the guy who doesn’t like mushy stuff.”

“Ooooh, Jeff’s embarrassed because he’s realised he _does_ have a heart after all. Ooooh.” Annie teased before poking her tongue out, to which Jeff did the same, but as he did, Annie closed up his mouth with hers. As they pulled away, Jeff scrunched up his face.

“You’re gross.”

* * *

 

“So, Annie I believe you’ve prepared some more of your handy little stars for the wall?” Frankie said, leaning her elbows forward onto her binder. Annie nodded, standing up with a bunch of them.

“I do, and _this_ time I have permission from the Dean to use _pins_ on the wall so we don’t have a repeat of the err… Frisbee incident.” Annie mumbled, tacking a couple of them to the ‘To Do’ side of the chart… but as she did, something caught Britta’s eye; something small, shiny and silver.

“Annie, can I see your hand for a second?” Britta said, as Annie turned back around to sit down. A small ‘hmm’ of a squeak slipped through Annie’s mouth, making everyone in the room look at her (including Jeff who was now covering part of his face with his hand).

“Yeah, Edison, let’s _see your hand._ ” Chang said, of course not knowing why they should be looking at her hand.

Annie pulled out her right hand, turning it around in the air, her left hand firmly placed on her hip out of sight.

“Okay Britta…?” Annie said questioningly.

“The _other_ one.” Britta squinted her eyes.

“The _other one!_ ” Chang said, standing up and pushing a finger to the table. Jeff looked between him and Annie, unsure of where this was heading. Annie just squealed slightly again, darting her eyes between everyone including Dave beside her who didn’t have a clue what was going on. She squealed again, aiming the noise toward Jeff, who just acted as if he was one of the others.

She slowly peeled her hand away from her waist, her eyebrows raised with a smile. As her hand appeared, she gave in, flicking her fingers down so the ring was on full show. Jeff just folded his lips in and stayed with his hand covering up his goofy face.

“You _proposed?_ Woah, I did _not_ know you guys were so serious.” Britta said, looking at them both (but specifically Jeff) with wide eyes. But both him and Annie just looked away, smiling a little bit as an awkward silence fell over the table.

“You _proposed?_ I did _not_ know you guys were _so_ serious?!” Chang shouted a minute later, everybody turning to look at him.

“Dude, you have problems.” Dave said, shaking his head.

* * *

 

_BRITTA:_  Forgot to say congrats… again, didn’t know how serious you two were.

_JEFF:_ Thanks and she said yes so why does it matter?

_BRITTA:_ I don’t know, it’s just the fact that you’ve not even been dating for two months yet.

_JEFF:_  Next week we would have plus it’s not like we have the whole ‘get to know each other’ thing to do – it’s been six years.

_BRITTA:_  I’m sure there’s stuff she doesn’t know about you.

_JEFF:_ I’m sure there’s stuff I don’t know about her.

_BRITTA:_ :P

_JEFF:_ What’s that supposed to mean?

_BRITTA:_  Nothing… I guess I’m happy for you both if you’re happy. Friendship.

“Who you texting?” Annie said, wondering over to Jeff at the couch, her hands in her back pockets.

“Britta.” Jeff said, pausing to look up at his new ‘fiancé’.

“What does she have to say?” Annie was now perched on the back of the couch, fiddling with a loose thread on the throw.

“She says she’s happy if we’re happy.” Jeff said, closing his mouth and clenching on his teeth slightly. Annie hummed slightly in thought, biting her lip at the same time.

“You don’t think she… cares, do you?” Annie asked as Jeff slipped his phone back in his pocket.

“What? You think Britta’s jealous? Britta isn’t jealous Annie, she’s just insecure over the fact that she didn’t ‘get the guy’.” Jeff sat up, shaking and shrugging his shoulders a bit as he answered to her concerns.

“I guess…” Annie said, standing back up to pop a sweet in her mouth, her ring sparkling in the light as Jeff watched her. As he did, his mind thought back to his conversation with his mum, which then reminded him that she’d probably be ecstatic to hear the news… so he pulled out his phone again, ignored the ‘Why are you not replying?’ message from Britta, and started a call. Annie’s attention once again returned to Jeff and his phone as he stood up and waited for it to connect.

“Darling, how are you?” Doreen said on the end of the phone.

“Hey, err, great… err, is this a good time?” Jeff said, leaning one arm on the other as he stood, rocking back and forth on his heels.

“It sure is. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, everything’s fine. I, err, just thought you might want to know that…” Jeff paused and looked at Annie to compile the final part of his sentence, “…I’m getting married.”

“Ooooh, you asked her? Ooooh, how delightful! Ooooh, I’m so happy for you.” Jeff rolled his eyes as he listened to her coo in excitement.

“Can I speak to her?” Jeff eyes widened at the question, holding the phone away from him for a second.

_“She wants to talk to you.”_ Jeff mouthed back at Annie.

_“Who is it?!_ ” Annie mouthed back.

_“My mom!”_ Jeff whispered, holding out the phone in her direction. Annie mouthed ‘Oh’ back before grabbing it from his hand, hesitatingly putting it to her ear.

“Hello!” Annie said with a chipper tone, raising her eyebrows up at Jeff as he stood watching awkwardly.

“Ooooh, Annie, my dear. Was it _romantic?_ ” Annie scrunched up her face at the question, still smiling but unsure how to answer it with Jeff standing right there in front of her.

“…it… was, yeah, it was. It was… _perfect._ ” Annie admitted, making Jeff look away in embarrassment, realising what the question was.

“Ooooh, well I’m so glad to hear it. I better be getting my invite sometime soon!” Annie raised her eyebrows again, smiling falsely, seeing as it has literally been _one_ day since Jeff’s proposal… some couples take years until they finally get married.

“Oh we’ll let you know, don’t worry.” Annie laughed, turning around on the spot, wondering around impatiently.

“Ooooh, well I won’t keep you two busy. Make sure Jeff calls me again soon.”

“I will. Speak soon!”

As soon as the phone disconnect, both Jeff and Annie let out a long sigh of relief.

“It was… _perfect?_ ” Jeff asked, tilting his head at Annie.

“It was… you know…” Annie gestured with her hand, shaking it a bit with her bottom lip out.

“Err, does that mean you were lying to my mom?” Jeff said, crossing his arms and raising one eyebrows just a tad, a smirk crossing his face.

“No, I just didn’t think you wanted to be known for the guy who likes mushy stuff…” Annie said, waking up to Jeff but turning in the other direction as she got close enough for a kiss. Jeff smiled and watched her walk away.

It was in that moment that Jeff was pretty sure he was going to have to drop that title. There was no way he could keep faking it… he _liked_ this kind of mushy stuff. 


	16. Step Fourteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Halloween might be over for us but it isn't in 'Season 7' for J&A. Also, I only changed the rating just in case, it's not actually got anything that would necessarily need to be marked as 'T', I just thought I'd add it in case.)

“Ugh, I can’t wait until Halloween is over, especially the Dean’s party on Friday… what are you two going as?” Britta said in a droning voice at Jeff and Annie.

“She’s finally going to go as my ring girl.” Jeff said with a ginormous grin across his face, pointing at Annie.

“Ugh.” Britta moaned in disgust.

“Ew, Jeff, I am _not_ going as your ring girl. I’m thinking of going as the corpse bride… because you know, it makes sense and all?” Annie said, waving her hand in the air giddily. Jeff sighed, looking back at Britta who’s face will still scrunched up.

“Jeff just wants you to go as something slutty and sexy because he’s a gross man with gross needs.”

“Yeah.” Jeff flashed a smile back at Annie, but Annie just rolled her eyes.

“There’s no point in doing Halloween, if you’re not going to be scary… otherwise what’s the point?” Annie said, shrugging and looking at the rest of the group.

“The point is so that I can look at you in a slutty costume without it actually making me look like a creep.” Jeff smiled back, trying to wind her up.

“Ugh, and you say _I’m_ gross.” Annie moaned, joining Britta’s side.

“Okay, meeting adjourned.” Frankie said, standing up and pushing her chair in.

“ _Nice.”_ Chang said, pushing in his chair too before clapping his hands and walking off. The others walked off too, Annie and Jeff trailing behind on their own.

“By the way, we’re doing pumpkin carving. I finally live somewhere where I can leave one outside without it getting stolen, crushed by a car or peed on by drunk men.” Annie said, clasping her binder to her chest. Jeff was now doing the moaning as the pushed the doors open into the outside.

“No we’re not.”

* * *

 

“Oh great, we actually are.” Jeff said as she sat at the kitchen table, two pumpkins in front of him, along with several knives and carving utensils.

“What? It will be fun… if you really want me to bribe you, you can dress up as like James Bond or whatever for the party and I won’t kill you.” Annie said, sitting down, a knife already in hand. Jeff rolled his eyes, picking up his own knife and making the first cut in the top.

A good hour later of endless cutting and mess making, Annie sighed in defeat, turning her pumpkin around to show a gremlin’s face with ears at the side.

“What’s yours?” Annie asked as Jeff turned his around.

“I was trying to do Annie’s Boobs, the monkey, but ended up just doing the real thing.” Annie pulled a disgusted face as his pumpkin was revealed (luckily he hadn’t gone too far into detail).

“Jeff!” Of course he just smiled again, but his smile was quickly stripped away when Annie threw pumpkin guts at his sweater. Jeff looked down, pursing his lips together, taking a deep swallow. He hummed, pulling the gunk off his chest and slapping it down on the table, slowly moving his hand towards his bucket, Annie’s eyes shifting into scared ones. Jeff grabbed some of the gunk, ignoring the feeling of pumpkin in his nails, lifting it up and throwing it back… it felt as if the world was in slow-motion as it flew across the table, squashing into Annie’s face.

Her mouth dropped open as the orange slime slipped down her face, her hair getting tangled in the mess.

“I did _not_ throw it at your face….” Annie also hummed a little, crossing her arms against her chest, “…if that’s how you want to play Winger, then let’s _play.”_ Jeff lent back, a smile crossing his face at her determination.

“Oh, let’s play baby.” He said, throwing another ball of gloop at her, laughing as it hit her. Another load of pumpkin was heading his way though, landing in his hair, making him actually brew up with anger. He delved back into the bucket, but as the next lot of pumpkin and seeds flew through the air, Annie jumped up, just missing his shot as his hit the wall. Jeff’s eyes bulged as the mess was created. _Crap,_ he thought. But Annie hadn’t got away quick enough it seemed, as the back of her blouse was splattered with pumpkin pieces.

“Huh! Look at my blouse!” Annie shrieked.

“Look at your blouse?! Look at my _hair!_ ” Jeff was shrieking now too as Annie looked down at her mess. As Jeff loaded up his hand, Annie fumbled at her blouse, pulling it over her head, orange gloop squashing over her face and neck. Jeff looked back at her in just her bra, clenching his teeth down. He stood, pumpkin still in hand, before hovering over her and squishing the gunk into her stomach. Annie peered down, holding onto the gunk before it slipped any further. She looked up at Jeff who had a mix of a grin and a face of fury on, before mushing it into his own sweater covered stomach, knowing that would rile him up even more.

He slowly let his hands drop to the hem of his sweater, peeling it up and off his body, but regretted it immediately as Annie wiped her grubby hands down his torso. Jeff grinned again, watching a small seed slide down Annie’s chest into her bra.

“You err, look a little messy.” Jeff said, stating the obvious.

“Wonder why that is?” Jeff shrugged at her question.

“Do you err, need a hand cleaning up?” Jeff asked, poking his tongue to the side of his mouth at the thought. Annie looked away in embarrassment, looking back a moment later.

“Maybe.”

“I need a yes or no answer.”

Annie paused, taking a deep breath, trying to ignore Jeff’s devilish grin.

“ _Yes.”_ She squeaked before brushing past Jeff to the other side of the room. Jeff laughed, looking down in embarrassment even though nobody was there to watch him.

_“I should carve pumpkins more often.”_ Jeff mumbled to himself before turning around and following Annie to ‘clean up’.

* * *

 

It was Friday and time for the Halloween dance… the cafeteria was covered in spider webs and cheap looking plastic skeletons, and luckily was well clear of zombie-inducing foods. Jeff was standing around with Britta and Chang… he had indeed dressed up as James Bond after Annie’s bribe, meaning his costume was just a smart black suit and a Martini glass.

“Even with Annie you still wimp out on the costume.” Britta said, nudging Jeff’s arm.

“Yeah, not even her bribes can get me to put on stupid make-up. We would have done a couple’s costume but she insisted on proving me wrong that scary… costumes… can still be… sex…y…” Jeff said, trailing off as Annie entered the room.

“Ugh.” Britta said, rolling her eyes as he walked away.

He had definitely proven Jeff wrong. Annie had stuck to her plan of being the corpse bride, but with a twist of a plunging neck line, and no eye make-up (she didn’t really need it seeing as her eyes were already pretty huge). Jeff wondered over to her, nodding forward when she tilted her head creepily.

“You win.” He said, before Annie clasped her hands on Jeff’s tie flirtatiously.

“When am I ever wrong?” She said, before letting go and walking away, waving back at Britta.

_I don’t actually know,_ Jeff thought.

* * *

 

“Well, Happy Halloween you guys. It’s been a great semester so far and you should all be very proud of yourselves.” Frankie said, holding up a glass, her vampire’s cape swishing as she did so. Everyone else held up a glass too.

“We’ve done pretty good haven’t we?” Britta said triumphantly. She was dressed up as an emo from head to toe.

“We have!” Annie cheered on, smiling happily. Jeff looked down at her from her side, smiling too.

“I guess we should _probably_ congratulate Jeff and Annie too… so, cheers guys.” Britta added, holding up her glass once more. Jeff shyly tapped his against hers, giving her a half smile before standing back again.

A while later when the party was fizzling out, Jeff stood by the door waiting for Annie to join him, an arm held out as she did.

“Mi’lady?”

“Mi’lord.”


	17. Step Fifteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was after new year however when a big plot twist happened (as Abed would call it)... DUN-DUN-DUNNN...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Not sure why I made this happen but I just decided it worked. This fanfic is slowly going into the un-realistic direction but hopefully it's still enjoyable.)

“What are you guys doing later? Jeff and I are going to go home and start _wedding planning…_ ” Annie said with a girly smile, nodding her head forward as her cheeks blushed a tiny bit.

“We are….?” Jeff said, his arms crossed over as he pretended to know that was the plan. Britta watched him, looking back and forth to Annie.

“I know you’re going to love that.” Britta teased, clasping her hands at her chest with false enthusiasm. Jeff avoided Britta’s eye sight before turning his head and smiling.

“Of course I am, what wouldn’t I love about doing wedding planning with my fiancé, Britta?” Jeff said, keeping his eyes on Annie until the word ‘Britta’. Annie looked at Jeff disappointedly as he looked away, her shoulders sulking.

“In answer to your question Annie, I shall be at my bar, where I still work, and I will be giving free booze to any of the committee who join me on this _‘Free-ky Shots Friday’…”_ Britta clasped her hands on the desk, swaying her head around the table, landing on Jeff who looked at Annie in a nod, slowly leaning his neck up and around until he was looking at the floor beside Britta’s boot. Annie sighed, and rolled her eyes.

“Fine, we'll go… but _only_ if Jeff _promises_ that we start the planning _tomorrow._ ” Jeff looked back up and around, leaning his back straight against the chair so his chest was puffed out slightly.

“Deal.”

* * *

 

Everyone except from Dave gathered around at Britta’s chock-a-block bar (including the Dean), for once being the ones not making the most noise. Annie basically sat on Jeff’s lap, Frankie moaned about the amount of noise pollution the place was contributing, Chang sipped back a beer and the Dean swayed to some bad eighties song that you could faintly hear in the background.

Every now and again, Jeff would slip his hands around Annie’s waist, ignoring the faces Britta (and slyly, Frankie) was making. But after a while he got fed up with it…

“Oh so what, I’m not even allowed to put my hands on her now?” He said, shooting a look at Britta. Annie twisted her eyebrows, not really sure what to say or do.

“I’m not stopping you.” Britta shrugged, making Jeff sigh and shake his head, and just as he looked over his shoulder, he was met with someone who Britta seemed _rather_ familiar with.

“Darren!” Jeff followed ‘Darren’ with eyes, as he scooted on a seat next to Britta, excusing himself for his intrusion. He was a scruffy looking guy, but Jeff could see his appeal… scruffy but somehow well sculpted.

“Err, once again, sorry folks. I’m Darren, err, Britta’s friend. You must be…?” Darren said, holding out a hand towards Frankie. Jeff sat forward, resting his chin on Annie’s shoulder to watch things unfurl.

“ _No, this is where I come in…_ ” Britta mumbled to herself, “…Darren, this is Frankie, the Dean, well, Craig, this is Ben… Chang, that’s Jeff and that’s Annie.” Annie said a small ‘hi’ with a wave, Jeff gave a closed lip smile too, and the rest just mumbled as much as of a ‘hello’ as they wanted.

“So… you all go to Greendale right? Britta’s college?” Darren said, pointing a finger, everyone droning a reply once again.

“And you’re his… daughter?” Darren asked boldly. Jeff clenched his teeth and gulped whilst Annie’s mouth dropped open in shock.

 _“Annie, can you excuse me whilst_ I punch this guy in the face?!” Jeff said, ending his sentence with a raised voice. Darren put up his hands, as Britta sat doing nothing whatsoever to help the situation.

“Woah, dude, sorry, I just… I didn’t know…”

“ _We_ are getting _married_ , so you do now.” Jeff said, spitting slightly through his teeth, looking at Britta…

“I… ugh… err… eck… meh… ugh… yup… uhh…” She could hardly form a sentence as Jeff’s eyes bore through her.

“I’m _sorry_ but Darren didn’t know… we’re _new_ friends so… Darren maybe we should just…” Britta said, pointing a thumb towards the bar, before standing up and talking to him alone.

 _“Did he really just say that?”_ Annie whispered back at Jeff.

“Yeah, he did.”

“Yikes, haha.” The Dean said with a laugh… everyone glared at him. _Oh, this is a time when I don’t laugh, aha, okay,_ he thought to himself.

* * *

 

“That dude was literally a _douchebag.”_ Jeff said as he unlocked the door and walked into the house, slipping off his coat as Annie locked it back behind them.

“Well, I’m not saying I disagree… but, why do you care so much?” Annie said, pulling a confused face. Jeff didn’t seem jealous and he had no reason to be, but the way he was acting was pretty extreme.

“Because he was such an idiot! I mean, seriously…” Jeff threw his keys into a pot, undoing a couple of his shirt buttons just after.

“Well if he was such an idiot, you should just… let it slide, okay? Seriously, he’s not worth it.” Annie said, shrugging her shoulders at Jeff who was obviously quite flustered. He took a deep breath and shook his hands slightly.

“You’re right. He’s not, so… I’ll let it slide.”

“Right…” Annie said, sliding her hands up and down his arms, as his jaw obviously tightened.

“… _now_ do you see why we should have done wedding planning?” Annie said in a slightly patronising voice, making Jeff jolt his head back.

“Wait, you knew about that guy?” Jeff asked, not fully understanding her point.

“What? No, of course not! I’m just saying… sometimes it doesn’t hurt to go along with my plans, even if you don’t like them. You should know that by now.” Annie let her hands fall to her side before walking over to the bedroom to get ready for bed. Jeff couldn’t really argue with that… well, maybe he could.

“Yeah well can you go along with my plans for a change?” He called out as he turned around to face the door.

“And, err, what would they be?” Annie replied as she slipped on some pyjama bottoms and tied back her hair.

“You, me, the bed, now.” Jeff said, almost moaning.

“Err, are you suggesting something or are you just _really_ tired?”

“Both.” Jeff said before crawling on to the bed, placing a sloppy kiss on Annie’s lips. As he pulled away, Annie sighed.

“Are you drunk?” Jeff dropped back, the bags under his eyes more sunken and his hair slightly dishevelled to match his crinkled up shirt.

“No…?”

“Go to sleep _drunky.”_

* * *

 

“When the _hell_ did you have time to do all of this?!” Jeff shrieked as Annie finished up her mini-presentation of ‘initial’ wedding ideas. His face was one full of shock, happiness and confusion.

“Well… er… hm…” Annie mumbled, fiddling with her fingers.

“Yeah, don’t explain.” Jeff said, sitting down, his face still stuck in shock.

“It’s just a _few_ basic ideas that you’d have anyway… it’s not like I thought of the _exact_ colour scheme as soon as you proposed or anything…” Annie trailed off.

“Right.”

“Well…? I mean, it’s not like we’re getting married this year… right?” Jeff rested back in his chair, smiling at her enthusiasm.

“Jeff?” Annie said, clicking her fingers a few minutes later. Jeff had hardly noticed himself in a daze.

“Huh? Oh right, yeah, no, not this year, I mean, we could get married in like three years if you wanted.” Annie paused to look at him, before shaking her hand in a so-so manner.

“Spring would be cute, right?” Annie asked, her eyes bright. Jeff just looked at her and nodded, trying his best to sound interested. Annie rolled her eyes, collecting up some pieces of paper and shoving them back into her organiser.

“Okay, I’m rushing things, it’s not like we’ve only been dating for what, like _two_ months.” Annie picked up her folder and stood up, shoving it back into a cupboard. Jeff nodded his head forward, looking down at his tight fitting t-shirt (he hardly ever wore t-shirts, mainly for the reason he explained in the study room that night, he looked like he’d forgotten to get dressed), before sighing himself.

“Annie…” She stopped in her tracks, her phone in hand.

“Look, maybe it was crazy of me to propose or whatever, but… I _do_ want to marry you. I wouldn’t have asked if not… I want to spend my life with you because… I love you. So, you’re just as crazy as me.” Jeff admitted, looking at Annie who’s face relaxed just a little.

“But… probably a little bit more right?” Annie asked sweetly… Jeff just laughed under his breath. _Probably._

* * *

 

The next couple of winter months went pretty smoothly… Greendale was fine and the _Improve_ Greendale Committee was still doing its job, although the cigarette was still that… a cigarette (no carrot sticks in sight just yet). Annie’s wedding planning had slowed down just a tad until the new year; Jeff’s therapy sessions had finished; the Dean only planned one winter themed dance; Frankie had started to adjust to the whole ‘Jeff and Annie’ thing; Chang was somehow seeming more normal by the day and Britta was… well, still the worst, especially as she had officially started dating Darren, much to Jeff’s disappointment.

It was after new year however when a big plot twist happened (as Abed would call it).

Annie was starting her first week back at FBI Colorado, and all seemed normal… except from the itching question in her mind about her ‘time of the month’. Annie was an organised person, she kept track of _everything_ and she certainly didn’t skimp when it came to personal affairs, so when she headed to the bathroom on her first day, she sat there slightly confused. So she… Googled it, on her phone, in a state of mild panic.

_Maybe it’s just stress because of starting a new year… or anxiety over… the wedding? But we’ve hardly been planning it recently and… or it can be… weight loss or weight gain or over exercising… I have been working out with Jeff more recently but not that much… or there’s that other thing… no… wait, let me think… no, it definitely can’t be, Jeff and I are always safe… aren’t we? Oh god…_

The rest of the day was a blur, that thought scratching at her mind. It was only a _possibility_ that the ‘P’ word could be involved, so that’s what kept her sane throughout the day… until Jeff texted.

 _JEFF:_  Pick you up at 5? X

 _ANNIE:_ Nope, nope, all good, think I’m going to go shopping with someone from work. Spontaneous! X

 _JEFF:_ Okay… x

 _ANNIE:_ Cool!

 _JEFF:_ Love you x

 _ANNIE:_ Love you too x

It wasn’t exactly a lie, she was going to go shopping, but on her own, for something very specific. She gulped, hoping she hadn’t come across weird or in a state of panic over text message, but then she realised she was over thinking again. _Jeff can’t read panic after ‘nope, nope’… can he?_

“Ugh.”

* * *

 

Annie sneaked into the pharmacy near Greendale (she wasn’t a hundred percent sure why she was being so careful but… _what if Britta’s in here? What if I see someone I know? What if… okay, Annie, stop, this is fine, you could be in here for anything_ ), quickly passing the pills and vitamins section that she always tended to avoid, looking down the aisles for any familiar faces, before slowly walking down a very specific aisle that was full of very specific items. She wondered down at a pace that made her look as if she was doing just that, _wondering,_ until she stopped, quickly grabbed a couple of the closest boxes and speed walked to the check-out where she was greeted with a mid-sixties woman from Texas.

“Someone wants to be extra sure…” She said with a chuckle, looking at Annie who had raised eyebrows and scared smile across her face.

“Yup.”

“So what are you hoping for?” She asked as Annie poked her PIN into the machine, her ring sparkling back at the old lady.

“Hmm?... err…” That’s when it hit Annie; she didn’t really know? She didn’t know what she’d do if she realised her panic had been valid.

“Is it bad that I don’t know what I’m hoping for?” Annie asked with a nervous shrug.

“No, I’m sure you’ve got it all figured out.” The lady said, passing Annie a bag whilst pointing her finger towards Annie’s ring. Annie looked down, biting her lip at the thought.

“Um, is there… any chance I could, use your bathroom?” Annie said, the bag hooked over her arm.

“Of course, it’s right over there.” Annie smiled back politely before slowly walking over to the door, pushing it open and locking herself into a cubicle.

 _Okay, it could just be a false alarm, there is no need to panic… and you have three tests, so the first one might be faulty, or the second, or the third… you might be hallucinating if you see a plus sign, I mean, under these circumstances, you could totally be hallucinating… okay Annie, shut up, open the box, read the instructions and just breathe…_ Annie thought as she opened the box up, taking the ‘thin piece of plastic with a thing on the end of it’ out, her hand shaking.

A minute or so later she was pacing herself in the cubicle that could only be paced about two steps back and forth, waiting for something to happen, when her phone buzzed once again.

 _JEFF:_ What time are you home? Want to go the gym x

 _ANNIE:_ Err, about 20 minutes? X

 _JEFF:_ I’ll wait x

 _ANNIE:_ Okay, cool! X

As she put her phone down though, the ‘thin piece of plastic with a thing on the end of it’ caught her eye. A small symbol had appeared. Annie gulped.

* * *

 

Jeff was definitely waiting when Annie arrived home, his gym gear on with a hoodie and his laces all tied up; a contrast to Annie’s smart little suit and buttoned up blouse.

“Hey, you have fun?” Jeff asked as she sat on the couch’s arm.

“Mhmm.” Annie mumbled, wondering over to the living room.

“Are you going to come?” Jeff said as he bit down on a flaking bit of thumbnail.

“Mhmm.”

Jeff watched Annie as she swallowed down a glass of water in one, tapping her hand on the kitchen counter, her bag still swaying over her shoulder. After her glass settled back down on the side, she excused herself to get ready, but she didn’t go back into the bedroom, she went into the spare room, making Jeff realise something was definitely up. He pouted for as second, rubbing his hands on his thighs before walking up to the door way and standing up against it, crossing his arms as she looked up, her eyes glossy.

Her hand slipped into her bag, before placing a specific something down on the bed. Jeff’s eyes flicked between Annie and her hand before he swallowed and lent his head back, his arms still crossed.

“You didn’t go shopping did you?” Jeff said, looking back out into the living room, before returning his gaze to Annie who was replying with a shake of the head. Jeff uncrossed his arms and walked over to her, picking the test up and biting his lip with a sigh. Annie looked down at the floor as he did, both of them not really knowing what this meant… that Annie’s panic _was_ valid and that both ‘P’ words _were_ involved… she was positively pregnant.

“How did you know?” Jeff asked, his voice screeching just a little bit. Annie sighed.

“Because I’m a woman Jeff and when it comes to that time of the month and nothing comes… you get worried.”

A moment passed, Jeff still standing, looking down at the little pink cross. All Jeff could think was, _you have my baby._

“What are you thinking?” He asked, his voice low and deep.

“I… I don’t know… I mean, we’re _clearly_ not ready for this… we’ve only being doing this for four months, we’re meant to be getting married… and… I didn’t expect to have kids for _at least_ a few years, I don’t even know if you _want_ kids?” It was true, she didn’t. Jeff hadn’t ever told Annie about his fantasy world, so when he rolled his head and didn’t reply, she let out a little squeak.

“I don’t know about timing, you’re right, but…” Jeff finished talking to shrug with a smile.

“It’s not a small decision Jeff… it’s a _baby…_ a child which needs attention and care, and love, for the rest of its life. We don’t even know if…” Annie stopped in her tracks as she realised she was starting to sound like Jeff.

“We don’t even know if…? This isn’t going to work? That’s always going to be a question, and you _know_ I know that, but that’s the same whether you’ve known each other for twenty years or two… nobody knows, you just have to… _try._ ”

“This isn’t something you can just _try_.” Annie said, flicking a piece of hair back of her face.

“You have to tell me what you want Jeff, please?” Annie asked, her eyes pleading along with her voice. Jeff gulped and sighed, his mind a-blur.

“I… want what you want, but… you have to tell me what that is too.”

“…If somebody had told me yesterday, I would have tried everything to stop it from happening… but, now I don’t know…” You could see Annie’s eyelashes flickering slightly and her lip start to quiver, as Jeff’s jaws clenched down rapidly.

“Your decision won’t change that much Annie, so, that’s that.” Jeff said, putting the test back down on the bed. Annie’s mouth opened a little bit, taking in a deep breath.

“You can’t say that Jeff… you realise that if we take that attitude, I have to end up having an abortion… and saying that out loud, sounds _crazy.”_

“Well then it wouldn’t be that bad keeping it, would it?” Jeff raised his voice without realising.

“You have to tell me what to do.” Annie’s voice cracked.

“I’m not going to tell you what to do because I’ve already held you back enough. This is already my fault and I don’t want it to be yet _another_ mistake of mine.” Annie folded in her lips, closing her eyes for a second.

“It’s not your fault Jeff… we’re in a relationship, I could have taken better precautions myself.”

A few moments passed of pure silence, the air filled with tension, Jeff just pacing up and down as Annie sat trying to calm herself down, but Jeff’s fidgeting was driving her insane.

“Can you go to the gym?” She asked, not looking him straight in the eye. Jeff looked down at her, for some reason feeling slightly angered by her question.

“You want me to go the gym?”

“I just want to feel normal, so I can think.” Annie said, her eyes melting through Jeff.

“I’m not going to the gym.” Jeff said through gritted teeth.

“Please?” Annie pleaded. Jeff finally gave in, heading out the door to his car, belting up and driving off. Instead of turning left at the end of the road though, he turned right and parked up in a nearby parking lot. There was no way he could go the gym with Annie on his mind.

For Jeff it wasn’t necessarily a question of what he wanted, it was a question of what Annie wanted and whether he was happy with that. He knew in his heart she really didn’t want _or_ need this right now but part of his selfish heart, _did_ want to keep this little tiny blob of life. Jeff sat in his car, rested the back of his seat down and thought it all over… flashes of his fantasy creeping in to his mind.

The little blonde haired and blue eyed boy toddling around a toy covered house, Annie’s smile when Sebastian achieves a big milestone, the thought of coming home to two of his favourite people every day would make working at a crappy community college all worthwhile… it was just the small things Jeff wanted. He didn’t even know what being a dad meant; he didn’t know how pregnancy worked out or how to change a diaper… he had no idea about all of these things but for some reason it all seemed so… reasonable. For once in his life Jeff wasn’t thinking about whether it was stupid to want a perfect life or not… he was thinking about what his perfect life would be… and it wouldn’t need to be perfect… the situation they were in, wasn’t perfect.

It didn’t help the Annie situation though. Like he’d admitted, she’d already dropped everything to live with Jeff, even if it was her decision. She could be going to Quantico right now, or on her way to working a big time job in DC… instead she was working part-time in a job she didn’t _necessarily_ want, earning credits at Greendale, the place that had held her close for far too long, and _living_ with the _person_ who had held her close for far too long without actually giving anything back.

* * *

 

For Annie, it wasn’t necessarily a question of what _she_ or Jeff wanted, it was a question of what was right or wrong. It was a question of whether she should take this path, as it’s been handed to her, or whether she should carry on with the one she was on, the one that was heading towards being married, _maybe_ moving to DC to finally start the career and life she wanted. But for Annie, that meant being selfish… Jeff was right all that time ago; she was selfish, she just wasn’t as good as being it yet, and she still wasn’t.

She’d realised that Jeff probably did want kids (or _a_ kid) at one point, he was ‘due’ for them after all… and she knew at some point she wanted them to, but whether right now, after six years of ignoring what was going on, and only about four months of actually acting upon that, was the right time… well, that was a pretty big question to ask herself.

So she sucked it up, went to the bathroom and tried the two extra tests to be sure… and that’s when it all came clear. It wasn’t about what _she_ wanted, or what Jeff wanted, it was about what _they_ wanted, as a couple, in a relationship, who were getting married.

* * *

 

Annie waited for Jeff by the door, noticing his lack of sweat and ‘post-gymness’.

“You didn’t go, did you?” Annie asked, pulling down the sleeves of her hoodie she’d slipped on after taking the tests.

“I _went_ but I didn’t go… to the gym. I couldn’t, _obviously._ ” Jeff said as he took of his trainers.

“I’ve thought about it… I bought two extra test in case, and I took them… and I am _definitely…_ pregnant but… we shouldn’t think about it individually… we should think about it _together,_ because that’s what parents do, right? So… don’t think about me, and what I _should_ do, think about _us._ Think about the fact that maybe we’re meant to do this… maybe we’re meant to because we spent so long _not_ doing anything. We’re always going to be able to ask ourselves ‘what if?’, but it doesn’t matter. What matters is making the most of the decisions you make…. And, I think… I want to make this decision with you.”

Jeff watched Annie, watching how mature she was being. He clenched his teeth as she stepped closer to him, a small smile creeping across his face.

“Yeah.” He nodded, pulling her in for a hug.

_I’m going to be a dad._


	18. Step Sixteen

The mutual decision between both Jeff and Annie was to keep their secret, as that… a secret, until Annie physically started showing signs that she was pregnant but of course this came with its complications seeing as their friends (especially Britta) were pretty good on picking up changes.

The first thing Britta noticed was during a committee meeting a week or two after Annie found out she was expecting.

“So, are we all on board to finally clear out the Frisbees from the storage room this weekend?” Frankie said, pointing a pen to everyone individually. As everyone nodded and shrugged in agreement, Annie put a hand to her mouth, one eyelid quivering as she held down a nauseous feeling.

“Annie?” Frankie asked, waiting for her response of agreement.

“Ugh… yup, yup, all good, I’ll… be there.” Annie swallowed, letting out a small sigh as the feeling faded along with all signs of colour in her face. Jeff clenched on his teeth as he eyed her.

“Are you okay? Annie, you look really pale all of a sudden.” Britta chirped up, her hands down on the desk.

“Yup, all good… d-d-don’t worry about me.” She said, her hand still at her face. Jeff clenched his teeth some more, looking at Britta to make sure she wasn’t catching onto anything.

“Okay well, I think that’s all for today. See you again tomorrow, and then again on Saturday.” Frankie said, pushing away and exiting the room.

“Woah, Jeff, your fiancé looks really pale… are you sure she’s not a ghost? Are you all seeing her?” Chang said, stepping away from his chair and waving his hands around to get clarification he wasn’t going slightly insane again.

“She’s fine.” Jeff said, waiting for the group to exit before stretching over the table.

“You’re not fine.”

“I’m just… feeling a little bit… queasy.” Jeff nodded, checking that off the list of things he _kind of_ knew pregnancy could cause.

“Do you need to go home?”

“No, just some err, water. Need some water.”

“Water? Got it.”

* * *

 

Britta invited the gang over to the ‘303’ apartment and of course with Annie in tow, Jeff and her were there a good ten minutes early, meaning Britta had time to empty her cat’s litter box, which of course was something you did when you had guests over. _Obviously._

 _“Err… Jeff… not really supposed to be near litter boxes and cat poo when err… you know…”_ Annie whispered, smiling back at Britta when she settled back down. Jeff smiled back too, thinking of what he was going to do to get out of this one.

“Britta… any chance you can do that in another room? It’s kind of gross and I have a new sweater on, so you know… all the dust and the smell… kinda’ don’t want to ruin it.” He said, pulling at his sweater. Britta grumbled and squinted at him before moving the tray. Annie sighed, settling down into the couch.

 _“Thank you._ ”

* * *

 

There first hospital appointment was an odd one – they were too early on to have a first scan, so it was more a chance to register with a midwife and actually start the process off.

“Okay so do you have an estimate to how far along you are?” The nurse asked, making Jeff and Annie looked at each other, wondering how to answer.

“Err… no… not _really._ ” The nurse laughed slightly giving them both a smile, to which Jeff just shuffled in his seat. He didn’t really like hospitals that much seeing as the last time he was in one it was for almost killing himself from overdosing on anti-aging pills and scotch.

“Well by the looks of things you are… about _five_ weeks along so… it was eventful New Year, huh?” The nurse teased, but she slightly regretted it as Jeff and Annie sat still in a stare. The truth was… she was right. Annie mentally counted back, realising that it genuinely had been New Year’s Eve… _oh god, that’s so… ugh,_ she thought. Jeff’s thoughts were fairly similar too.

The rest of the meeting was slightly dull, going over different plans and options for the next nine months, kind of scaring both Jeff and Annie at the thought that this was _really_ happening. Britta had been right… Jeff _did_ get Annie pregnant accidentally. _Well, at least you knew before it happened…_ Jeff muttered in his mind.

* * *

 

“I can’t go to Britta’s bar tonight.” Annie blurted out over dinner one night. Jeff looked up in confusion.

“Why not?”

“Because… if we’re not telling anyone… y’know… I can’t drink! And I was… _kind of_ thinking you wouldn’t either… for moral support… I mean, it’s not like I _need_ you too but okay just ignore that but I won’t be able to drink and that would be kind of weird, right?” Jeff thought about it, realising she was right.

“Just say that you don’t feel great and you don’t want to drink.”

“Won’t that be even more suspicious?”

“No? It’s fine, I promise.” Annie nodded and carried on eating, hoping and praying that Britta wouldn’t pick up on anything else.

…but of course she did. She didn’t mention anything but adding up Annie being nauseous, Jeff wanting her to move the cat crap away and now not drinking… something was definitely up. So she teased them by finding something that could make them slip up. _Bad. Smelling. Food._

So during lunch a few days before Jeff and Annie’s first scan, she sat down at the table with some eggs that were notorious for being stinky at Greendale. Jeff noticed her plate, not thinking that it could cause Annie to react.

“Ugh, why would you order them? I don’t know why but every year, they’ve gotten worse.” Jeff said, scrunching up his face as she sat down. Annie looked over, curious to know what they were talking about.

“What did yo-… oh…” Annie said, the smell hitting her. Nothing happened for a few moments so Annie had a moment to think…

“Wait, Britta, aren’t you vegan?” Annie asked, trying her best not to breath in the stink.

“Err… yeah…. but… my doctor… suggested that I… eat some eggs to… boost my… immune system?” Britta spoke, making up things as she went along. Jeff and Annie just stared at her suspiciously, before the smell really overtook Annie, her stomach curling up inside its self. She gulped before standing up carefully, grabbing her bag and water and walking away from the cafeteria. Now it was Jeff joining up the dots. He turned back around from where he’d lent over the bench to watch Annie walk away, clenching his teeth and glaring at Britta.

“Not. Cool.” Britta faked a confused face, tilting her head with a hum.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” She said as Jeff stood up, taking his tray with him to go and find Annie. It was clear now that even without a bump, they couldn’t hide their secret for much longer.

* * *

 

“Err… Annie and I… have some news…” Jeff said, leaning forward towards the table, everyone’s eyes on him, quickly changing to Annie as she spoke up.

“I’m-.”

“You’re pregnant.”

“Yeah, you’re pregnant.”

Everyone chimed in unison. Jeff looked up at everyone, seeing how unsurprised they were, before flashing his eyes at Britta who was smirking.

“I _knew_ you knew.” He said, pointing a finger.

“I _knew;_ you knew I knew.” She added, shaking her face at him.

“Wait, you knew?” Annie asked, snapping everyone’s attention back to her.

“Oh come on Annie, I don’t listen to what my doctor says, this is _my_ body, I’ll do what I want with it because it’s a free world and it’s a free country. Of course I knew!” Britta said, crossing her arms triumphantly.

“How long did you guys know?” Annie asked, looking at the group in general.

“Well, Britta pointed out a few things a couple of weeks ago but the biggest tell-tale sign was the fact that you weren’t drinking at Britta’s bar.” Frankie said, smiling back slightly patronisingly.

“See?” Annie said, turning to Jeff.

“You’re _pregnant?!_ ” Craig cried, running in with his phone in the air. Jeff rolled his eyes, looking back around to the group.

“Who tweeted it?” He asked calmly, Annie turning to everyone else too, a hand out questioningly. Everyone shrugged but Dave.

“ _Dave?!_ ” Jeff asked, his voice full of surprise.

“Am I out of the group?” Dave asked shyly.

“ _No,_ it’s fine… I mean, we’d rather you _hadn’t_ havetweeted it, but it’s fine.” Annie said, putting a hand on Dave’s arm. Jeff looked at her amusingly, finding it weird how calm she was being about everyone _already_ knowing.

“Am I allowed to say, _I told you so?_ ” Britta asked, wiggling her eyebrows at Jeff.

“No.” He answered immediately.

“Ugh.”

“Wait, why is Britta saying I told you so?” Annie asked.

“She’s not.” Jeff said, reassuring her.

“Well, I kind of did when I asked. Before you two admitted you were sleeping together, I said I’d rather find out before he accidentally gets you pregnant.”

“Ugh, Britta.” Annie rolled her eyes.

“Oh you can’t seriously tell me this was _planned?_ ”

Annie sat up trying to make it out like it was when Britta was of course, correct.

“It… okay, you’re right it wasn’t.” Annie blurted out making Jeff roll his eyes now too.

“So your wedding’s still going on, right?” Frankie asked, crouching her shoulders down slightly.

“Yes, it is, and I actually have a really cute idea how we could find out the gender on the day… I might need your help Frankie.” Jeff shot his eyes to Annie.

“Wait, you want to find out?” Jeff asked in surprise.

“Ooooh _girl._ ” Chang cooed, clapping his hands together.

“Well I just… _can we talk about it later?”_ Annie said, squeezing Jeff’s hand across the table. He nodded, sitting back in his chair.

* * *

 

“I’m a planner okay, and for me, with work and the wedding… It would kind of ease the pressure off it I knew what to prepare for?” Annie said, holding Jeff’s hand as they stood in the living room.

“What difference does it make? Plus, if you find out… you start thinking of what they might be like and… I don’t know, I’m just not a fan.” Annie sighed.

“Can I at least tell you what my idea was?” Jeff sighed too, giving a little nod.

“The confetti we use can be blue or pink… Frankie can deal with it so we never have to know… wouldn’t that be cute?” Jeff rolled his head around, still not one hundred percent sold on the idea.

“Britta will _definitely_ have something to say about the whole blue and pink scenario.” Jeff added.

“ _True…_ but who cares? It’s _our_ wedding… so…?” Annie asked suggestively, her eyes wide and pleading, making Jeff sigh again.

“Can I sleep on it?” He asked, scratching around his beard with one arm, the other scratching behind his back, suggesting he was definitely ready to do just that.

“Ugh, fine.” Annie said, pushing him away. Before she knew it though, Jeff’s hands were wrapped around her and her feet were off the ground as he carried her towards the bedroom.

“ _Ahh,_ get me down! Baby on board!” Annie flailed and kicked, whacking Jeff’s shoulders.

“Meh.” He said, laughing as she still attempted to get down, brushing his bearded chin over her shoulder.

“Oh no, not the _beard!_ ” Annie shrieked, leaning back to slap him on the face.

“Did you just slap me?” He said, looking at her in surprise.

“You deserved it!” She said, settling down into his hold, her chest squashing up against his arm.

“Ah, well then I guess you don’t deserve this then…” Jeff said, closing the gap between them, teasing her by breaking away every now and then as they kissed.


	19. Step Seventeen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Because you can't have Greendale without paintball.

“First dance song?” Annie said, pacing around the room, a hand to the small of her back.

“Err… that’s your job.” Jeff said, cringing slightly at the thought.

“How is it my job?” Annie stopped pacing to look at his grimacing face, rolling her eyes at him.

“Just choose that stupid Gravity song.”

“Ugh, no.” As Annie jotted down notes on her clipboard Jeff couldn’t help but grin and laugh at the sight of her. She was four months along now, her bump fairly small but definitely noticeable. Annie didn’t exactly _love_ having it (in terms of practicality that is) so it didn’t really help that Jeff found it amusing (well, adorable in his mind).

“Stop laughing, okay?” Annie said, realising where his eyes were focused on, stretching her jumper over so her bump was concealed further, until she let it drop, feeling something she’d never felt before… her smile dropped but quickly returned when she realised what she was feeling…

“It _kicked! It’s kicking! Jeff!”_ Annie squealed, making Jeff look at her like a crazy woman.

“Come quick, feel, here.” Jeff stood up and casually walked over, trying to act cool during this milestone of a moment, placing his hand on Annie’s front which pretty much covered the whole bump on its own. Annie looked up at him as he felt one small kick, tiny and hardly noticeable, but enough for Jeff to look down and pout, his act of being cool slowly fading.

“Pretty cool, huh?” Annie asked excitedly.

“Pretty cool.”

* * *

 

The wedding date was slowly creeping up on them, which meant it was officially time to start preparation on the venue… Annie somehow had convinced Jeff to hold their wedding in the Greendale stables that were no longer in use. The plan was to strip it out, clean it and give it a fresh lick of paint inside and out – giving Greendale refurbished stables and Jeff and Annie a perfect wedding venue. It was weird and Jeff still couldn’t quite believe he was actually going through with it.

“Okay, we have non-toxic paint so that I can still contribute, we have blue and white for the outside and a light grey for the inside… there are rollers and overalls over there, and other brushes and utensils _there…_ I really appreciate this guys, plus you _all_ get a free credit once it’s finished!” Annie smiled back with a big grin, Jeff standing among the students who had enrolled to help out, his hands in his pockets as he watched his fiancé doing her thing in a white overall that showed off just a tiny bit of her bump, the zip exposing the top of her vest underneath and her hair scraped back into a high pony tail.

All the students and a couple of teachers moaned in agreement, setting off to get suited up in overalls, leaving Jeff standing around like a loose lemon.

“What are you doing?” Annie said, prodding his arm with a clean paint brush.

“ _Not_ putting on one of those.” He said, pointing to her outfit.

“Oh come on, you wore one for painting Shirley’s nursery that time.”

“Yeah when _nobody_ was watching…” Annie just stood there looking at him, her eyes wearing away at him. He finally gave in, uncrossing his arms and grabbing an overall from the pile, making Annie sway on the spot giddily.

* * *

 

An hour or so later the outside of the stable was a patchy mix of white and wood, most people stopping to take a break as the spring sun shone above them. A few students carried on though, alongside Jeff who was working up a sweat as he finished up part of the wall, his overall still looking perfect clean even though white paint was clinging all over and was starting to flake off.

As Annie sat out on the side-lines sipping some water, Jeff finally decided he was too hot to continue in the cheap piece of fabric so he clasped his roller between his teeth, slowly unzipping his overall to reveal his bare chest, letting the sleeves and top half hang over his hips where his jeans still clung to his legs underneath.

Annie looked up, taking a deep swallow as her eyes caught onto Jeff working away. It wasn’t a rare sight to her anymore but she couldn’t resist swooning just a little bit from a distance. Unfortunately, though, Jeff’s attempt of cooling off started a bit of a trend…

“If you’re allowed to take your shirt off then so are we!” Leonard called out, unzipping his own overall to reveal a rather different kind of torso, swapping the word from ‘ripped’ to ‘wrinkled’. Annie choked a bit on her water as he reached up with his paint brush. Jeff looked in Annie’s direction with bulging eyes, before putting down his roller and joining her, his elbows resting on his knees.

“That is _not_ a sight I wanted to see.” Annie said nodding towards the old man. Jeff of course took that as a cue, leaning back to stretch out, his hands behind his head. Annie noticed a few moments later, biting her lip at his vanity.

“You… I don’t even know.” Annie said looking away again. Jeff just lay back in bliss, ignoring her comment to take in the sun.

* * *

 

It was when all of the students and teachers stood in a line to appreciate the new outside appearance of the Greendale stables that things took a turn… nobody saw it coming but it made sense for it to happen _then_ with all of the paint involved. As everyone sighed in relief that the first task was complete, the whole line except from Annie let out a gasp of pain, several bangs echoing behind them. Jeff’s hand shot to his back, his fingers returning with green gloop on then.

“Paint. Ball.” He said, looking down at Annie whose face was full of concern.

“I didn’t get shot…”

“Of course you didn’t, you’re pregnant… which means, whoever’s in charge of this has some part of their brain properly functioning. We need guns, we need ammo, and we need it now.” Jeff spoke through gritted teeth, rubbing his green fingers together.

“Jeff, we are _not_ playing paintball! I thought you were over this?” Annie said, not realising that everyone was now standing around them, waiting for the next plan of action. Jeff had realised however, eyeing everyone from the corner of his vision, clenching his teeth.

“Annie, if you don’t want our _wedding_ venue to be covered in paint ball, then you have to let me do this.” Annie huffed, finally looking at everyone stood around.

“It might not be in the rules of whatever game they’re playing at, but if we want to keep all of our hard work intact, we’re going to need protection. Leonard, go get the Dean. Everyone else, surround the stables and just… stay put. Annie, go home.”

“What?!”

“Unless you want to get involved, go home. I’ll get this finished and I’ll come home too. Okay?” Annie gave in, walking away into the distance, making Jeff feel slightly nervous that this day had suddenly turned very dark.

* * *

 

“JEFF WINGER’S SHIRTLESS!” Leonard called out in the hallway outside of the Dean’s office, before getting shot a dozen times in the back. A slight cry came from Craig, before he sprinted outside, dodging paintball fire like it was a life or death situation (well, it kind of was).

* * *

 

“Jeffrey! Jeffrey! Where are you?” Craig called out, looking left and right, his eyes landing on the stables in all its white and blue glory, a hand up at his chest in admiration.

“Craig.” Jeff said, making the Dean turn around, his face full of disappointment as his eyes lay on Jeff’s fully zipped up overall.

“Someone thought it would be fun to start a paintball game whilst we’re painting the stables, so we need guns, we need ammo and we need it now.” Jeff repeated what he’d already said, knowing that the simplicity of his words would make Craig get to work immediately. It did of course, as he ran across the field, returning ten minutes later with a box of guns, his tie across his shoulder, a bead of paint dripping down his head.

“Why the hell did you get shot? They’re not meant to know about this.” Jeff said, spitting sweat as he spoke.

“How was I supposed to carry a _box_ full of guns from my office all the way out here, _slyly_ Jeffrey?” Jeff rolled his eyes, pulling the box out of Craig’s hands and calling the group back over.

“Okay, take a gun and _only_ use it if you absolutely have to. We don’t actually want to be part of the game… we’re just keeping the stable safe until it’s over. All clear?” The group nodded before running back to their stations.

“What should I do?” Craig asked with a giggle.

“Go… be a Dean? How do I know?” Jeff shrugged, making Craig give up and walk away, looking back _just in case_ Jeff had taken his overall off again.

* * *

 

 _ANNIE:_ Is everything okay? X

 _JEFF:_ Nobody’s come close so… should be over soon x

 _ANNIE:_ I hope!

* * *

 

Shots fired, gasps of pain echoed, paint splattered and men fell. It was unexpected… a whirl wind of colour and collisions, screams, sprinting and devastation. It lasted five minutes but the effects were permanent. Jeff turned around after shooting three people dead, a colour splats coming into view against a perfectly white background, surrounded by a perfectly blue border. He gulped, looking down to see if he’d been hit; he hadn’t, which by the sound of things (aka the silence around the campus) meant that he was the victor at a game he thought he’d given up.

He brushed sweat off of his forehead, unzipped his overall again and checked to see if Annie was still okay… she was but he wasn’t sure it would stay like that for very long once she saw the state of the stables now.

“Huh, you’re in the game?” A voice came from behind Jeff, one that he’d heard a few times before. He spun around on his heels and gulped… everything finally making sense.

“Huh, like you didn’t know… makes sense actually, ha! Britta told you _all about_ the paintball games, and how we slept together, so you had to come in and show that you could do it too… win a stupid, little, paintball game against a community college. Great idea, man. Really cool.” Jeff said, walking over to Darren who was stepping backwards bit by bit, raising his arms in the air.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about man… seriously.”

“Well if you don’t, then you’ll shoot yourself now and run.” Jeff said, pointing his gun to the campus.

“So you’d win? You are _not_ cool man, seriously.” Jeff laughed under his breath, the paint splattered stable in the corner of his eye.

“Don’t worry gentlemen, you won’t need to kill anyone.”

“AHH! What is _wrong_ with you?” Jeff shrieked, turning around to face the voice of Deputy Chief Custodian Lapari. As Jeff did so though, his eyes caught on to three other figures in the background; Britta, Annie and Frankie. _Crap._

“Would one of you _grown men_ like to explain what’s going on here?” Frankie said, crossing her arms as she stood in front of them, Britta and Annie on either side of her.

“Frankie, I _swear_ to you this has _nothing_ to do with me.” Jeff said, flicking his eyes between her and Annie who didn’t exactly look impressed.

“I’m sorry Jeff but I find that hard to believe seeing as you’re holding a gun in your hand.”

“I have a gun in my hand because I was trying to _prevent_ this from happening. We just spent _all_ morning and most of this afternoon painting that…” Jeff stopped himself from using an adjective in-between his sentence with Annie right there, “…stable… you _really_ think that I would start a _paintball_ game?” Annie rolled her eyes and stood forward a little.

“Jeff didn’t start the paintball game; he was just trying to help. So… it was either Darren or… Custodian Lapari.” Annie said, waving a hand in both directions.

“Oh come on, it wasn’t _Darren._ He’s just good at paintball, he doesn’t even go to Greendale.” Britta said, standing forward herself, coming to her boyfriend’s defence. Jeff and Annie moaned in unison.

“I’m sorry Annie, and Britta, but I don’t see why Deputy Chief Custodian Lapari would want to start a paintball again after last year’s ‘espionage’.” Frankie said, pointing a pen at the others, receiving a group moan in response.

“First of all, thank you for using my full custodial name and secondly, thank you for defending my honour. Why would I want to start a paintball game indeed?”

“Oh I don’t know, maybe because after all of these years you suddenly have something to destroy of ours, just like we did to your hallways, but may I note that it has _never_ been me that’s actually started the stupid little game in the first place.” Jeff stood over Lapari, anger raging through his veins.

“Well if that’s the case, do you mind apologising to Darren for accusing _him_ of starting it? Oh and maybe whilst you’re at it you can keep a zip on that mouth of yours that blurts out every piece of _crap_ that makes you look like the bigger guy?” Britta blurted out angrily, stepping forward and poking a finger. Jeff turned around, his nostrils flaring. Annie backed away slightly, unsure as to where this was going.

“Okay enough! …Custodian Lapari, did you or did you not, start this paintball game to get back at Jeff and his study group?” Frankie asked calmly, looking Lapari deeply in the eyes.

“We _literally_ never started a ga-.” Jeff started again, before Annie cut him off, putting a hand on his arm.

“I…” Lapari looked at Frankie before darting his eyes around the group, looking at Annie and her disappointed face as she stood with the stable to her back.

“Okay, okay, it was me, I admit it. But I swear, I never wanted it to get out of hand.” Lapari waved his hands in the air, his face full of regret.

“ _Oh,_ that’s what they all say.” Jeff said, crossing his arms triumphantly as Frankie stepped forward.

“I hate to do this but… you’re fired for not being the bigger man about this. I’m sorry.” She said, before turning her back as Lapari walked away, his head towards the ground.

“I’ll see you on Monday.” Frankie said, as if it was a repeat of the last paintball battle. Jeff sighed and gritted his teeth, realising that the sun was now going down and his skin was covered in goose bumps. His eyes landed on Annie who was taking a look at the now paint splattered stable.

“I’m sorry.” He said, putting an arm around her shoulder.

“Do you know what? It’s not _that_ bad… I mean, it wasn’t exactly the look I was going for but err… maybe it could work? Like an ode to all of the paintball games, all we need to do is fill in a few gaps.” She said, tilting her head to one side.

Jeff thought about it for a second, letting out a blow of air before clicking in some more ammo to his gun and handing it over to Annie.

“Your turn.” She looked up at him and smiled with a laugh, making Jeff laugh too, before standing forward, taking aim and shooting a load of green splodges across the wall. Jeff let her do her thing before walking over to Darren.

“Sorry about err, accusing you. Paintball at Greendale isn’t just a game… it’s a mind-set… plus you did pretty good.” Darren nodded, ignoring the fact that Jeff was obviously a lot bigger than him in the muscle department… _I am not getting into a fight with you,_ he thought.

“It’s okay… I’m sorry for being such an idiot when we first met. You’re cool, if I’m cool?”

“You’re cool.” Jeff said as Britta wondered over, peering behind Jeff where Annie stood, looking at her gun.

“I think your fiancé might need some new colours for her art work.” Britta pointed out. Jeff rolled his head in a nod, turning around and sorting out Annie’s gun.

“IF YOU STILL HAVE AMMO, COME PAINT THE WALLS!” He shouted out, causing all of the dead paintballers to rise. It definitely wasn’t the look either Jeff or Annie was going for, but somehow, in the end, it worked out okay. That was kind of Greendale’s effect after all.


	20. The Time Jeff Did Get Married

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Sorry it's not super long or anything - I just wanted to focus on cute little moments instead... enjoy!)

“I hereby pronounce you man and wife, you may kiss the bride.” It was Todd who uttered those words, rather surprisingly… it seemed he was available to do his second official wedding ceremony after Garrett’s, and although it did seem rather odd to have him there on the day, when Jeff looked back down at Annie, it didn’t matter who was there stood beside them, what mattered was the fact that they were actually doing it.

One of Jeff’s eyebrows raised as Annie’s lips folded in shyly, before his thumb brushed her cheek and their lips sealed together. Jeff closed his eyes and forgot about everything for just one moment as he held his hand at the back of her neck, her hair brushing down over her bare shoulders. Her dress was a sleeveless one, long and white with an embellished top… ‘very Annie’.

Britta sat in the front row along with Darren, scrunching up her face happily as Jeff and Annie shared their special moment. It didn’t really feel _weird_ seeing it happen, it just felt… relieving; knowing that loose ends had finally been tied up after all the questions. She smiled away happily next to the Dean, Frankie, Chang and Shirley (who’d made a surprise visit just for the occasion) who were also enjoying the moment.

Abed was also there as Jeff’s Best Man, which made sense as over the years Abed had become a brother to Jeff. He stood in his grey suit, smiling and swaying his head a little. He _was_ the original Jeff and Annie ‘shipper’ after all, right?

When Jeff and Annie broke away, Jeff held out his arm, and uttered the word that meant more than ‘I love you’… it was a word that he’d used when he’d kissed her hand back in the study room, it was a word that he’d used to cheer up when things seemed grey… it was _her_ word.

“Mi’lady?”

“Mi’lord.”

Annie lifted up the hem of her dress slightly so she didn’t trip, the fabric scrunching up around her bump, reminding everyone that it wasn’t just a wedding for two people, it was a wedding for _three…_ and that three was becoming even more real as they walked down the make-shift aisle in the Greendale stable, small pieces of tissue paper confetti floating around them. Jeff looked up with clenched teeth, noticing a large amount of a very significant colour. He couldn’t even remember whether they’d agreed on doing the whole ‘pink for girl, blue for boy’ thing, so when he looked down to Annie whose face was one of surprise, he knew it must have been a yes.

“Blue.” He said as they carried on walking, his hand in hers.

“Yeah.” Annie said, looking up at Jeff with a quivering smile.

 _Sebastian,_ is all Jeff could think as he smiled some more.

* * *

 

“Did we really just do that?” Annie said quietly as they walked onto the ‘dance floor’ for the first time, everyone mumbling away in the background.

“Yeah, I think we did.” Jeff said, smiling back down at her.

“We’re having a _son._ ”

“Yeah.”

Annie rested herself against Jeff’s chest, her little bump pressing up against him as he kissed her hair, stroking it slightly with one hand.

 _“Sebastian.”_ He whispered, looking down at her.

 _“What?”_ She peered up at him.

_“The name… Sebastian.”_

“ _Why Sebastian?”_

_“I just have a good feeling about it.”_

* * *

 

A while later Jeff and Annie found themselves in a bit of a group circle, all of their best friends standing close. Jeff looked around, flashing a smile at everyone, wondering if it felt weird to be doing this altogether.

“Do you know what feels weird? Not having Troy here… right?” Annie asked, her hands tucked under her bump. Everyone agreed, especially Jeff who perhaps over thought it, clenching his jaw and pouting.

“Who says Troy’s not here?” Jeff immediately looked up and there he was, stood next to Abed. Jeff looked down to Annie whose mouth had dropped open in shock.

“Troy!” Britta squealed, wriggling over to give him a hug. Jeff looked over to Abed though, giving him a questioning nod. Abed gave him a thumbs up, confirming that it was indeed him who’d been able to sort out Troy’s arrival. Jeff mouthed ‘Thanks buddy’ to Abed before receiving a ‘man’ hug from Troy.

“Congrats man, I mean, I always _kind of_ saw it coming but… this is cool.” Troy said, happily nodding away.

“Aww, thanks Troy. It’s been _forever!_ ” Annie squealed, giving Troy an awkward hug, being careful that he didn’t step on her dress or squash her bump.

“I know! Look at you! You’re like a… big, pregnant alien.” Annie scrunched up her face, but laughed it off, giving him another hug.

“Ooooh, this is _nice!_ ” Shirley squealed, making everyone laugh.

“Yeah… bring it in!” Jeff said, stretching out his arms. They all scrambled together, knuckling their heads together for the first time in well… a good two years.

 _“Careful! Baby. On. Board.”_ Annie squealed.

“I’m _gayyy_.” Chang piped up.

“We know…?” Jeff added questioningly.

“Oh I was just letting Troy and Shirley know, just in case.”

* * *

 

Jeff wondered over to Britta who was swaying to a cheesy disco tune playing on the random mix playlist.

“Hey.” She said as he stood next to her, a glass of scotch in his hand.

“Is this… weird?” Jeff asked, curious to know what she was thinking.

“Ha, which part?” Jeff laughed under his breath as she asked. A moment past until Britta _actually_ answered the question.

“It’s not _that_ weird. I mean, seriously, can you imagine _us_ getting married? It would end in disaster… it actually doesn’t seem that bad you and Annie… I’ve never seen Jeff Winger smile the way he smiles at err… Annie Winger? _Oh god…_ before.” Britta said, looking up at Jeff with raised eyebrows.

“You sound like my mom.”

“Isn’t she here?” Britta said, scouring the room for her.

“Yeah, I think she’s currently being molested by Chang so I should probably go save her.”

“Yeah, you go do that.” Jeff laughed and did exactly that.

Maybe Jeff’s question wasn’t really about him and Annie… maybe it was more about how things were between him and Britta. It wasn’t like they’d drifted apart but they definitely didn’t hang out as much anymore and tension definitely grew between them more than it had before… but they both appreciated their roles in each other’s lives. They were like a brother and sister… a very unconventional brother and sister, if that.

* * *

 

“A err, _Virgin_ Appletini for mi’lady…” Jeff said, passing her a drink as she sat on a bar stool in the fairy-light filled stable. It did look pretty good after all of the hard work, and blue confetti covered floor added a nice touch.

“Thanks.” Annie said, a tiny smile crossing her face but quickly fading.

“You okay?” He asked, crouching down a bit.

“Yeah.” She smiled back, but it was obvious she wasn’t.

“You’re not.” He said, and that was enough for her to roll her eyes and give in to admitting.

“I just… when we were standing in the circle and then Troy popped out of nowhere… I just… for some reason, which is probably my hormones, I suddenly really missed Pierce… which I know is crazy but it just felt _weird_ being back together again… you know?” He did know, and he’d thought the exact same thing even though Pierce had never been his favourite person. He sighed, holding his right hand with her right hand (specifically her right so he could feel his ring up against hers).

“I know… but just so you know, if you ever get fed up of me but still want another kid, you can always err, use up that flask of err… you know.” Jeff winked (which he hardly ever did due to it _kinda’_ looking creepy) in attempt at making her smile… and luckily it did work as she stood up off her stool, passed back her now empty glass and smiled.

“I’ll never get fed up of you…” She said, rolling her eyes and swishing past him to the rest of the group.

“I wasn’t really fishing for that but… okay!” He called out, laughing under his breath. _I’ll never get fed up of you too…_


	21. Step Eighteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter of "Is This Really What You Want?"... dun-dun-dun!

“ _Gooood_ morning Greendale, today we start the day with some rather exciting news, especially for all students studying Fundamentals of Law… Mr Jeffrey Winger’s classes are cancelled due to the fact that he is currently… sorry his _wife_ is currently in hospital, giving birth to their baby boy… so, there will be no Fundamentals of Law today or,” The Dean paused to whisper over the loud speaker, “… _the next three weeks,_ but all will return to normal after then. Good Dean!”

* * *

 

“Waaaaaah!” was his first word, according to Jeff.

As Annie lay back in the hospital bed, her hair clingy to her sweaty face, Jeff watched over the nurse who was gently cleaning up _his_ new born _son,_ checking him over for the first time. The first time? Everything was the first time from now on, even for Jeff. It was the first time he’d heard _his son_ cry; it was the first time he’d felt _love_ for somebody he’d only just met. Annie tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, looking over at Jeff whose teeth were obviously clenching at a rapid speed. He wasn’t the only sweaty mess, as his t-shirt clung in different damp areas from the hours of watching over Annie and her screams. He looked her way as she flashed a tiny smile, realising that she probably didn’t want her hair dangly in her face.

“Oh, wait, hang on.” Jeff said, excusing himself from the nurse, before dashing over to Annie’s hospital bag to grab a hair tie. She looked up at him as his hands brushed around her face, pulling her hair into a ponytail, his face scrunching up slightly as he attempted a knot.

“Thanks.” Jeff smiled back as he pulled away, surprising Annie that he knew how to do a pony tail properly. She quickly ignored it though as the nurse walked over, _their son_ cradled in her arms. Annie bit her lip… she hadn’t really had a chance to see him after he’d finally made an appearance, she was pretty worn out and the moment was a bit of a blur. The nurse passed him over to her, settling him down in the crook of Annie’s folded arms. Jeff watched over, trying to stay calm as he watched such a perfect moment take place.

Annie smiled, her eyes glossing over, a single tear catching onto her bottom eyelashes, her cheeks keeping it up as she carried on smiling in awe. Jeff crouched down, placing a hand on Annie’s leg and the other on her shoulder. He could feel his own tear brewing… he never cried, like, ever. Annie noticed it as he moved his hand from her shoulder to his face.

“Are you… crying?”

“What? No….?” Jeff said, pinching his fingers between his eyes, before opening them back up and smiling a toothy grin back at Annie, who noticed he was especially scruffy in the beard department. She giggled a little before peeling back the baby blanket to reveal a tiny pink hand, that wrapped right around her finger.

“ _Hey.”_ Annie whispered, feeling completely overwhelmed by the situation. She was a _mom_ to a _son,_ whose father was _Jeff._ She didn’t even have a mom to share this moment with (well she did, and her name was clearly marked in her phone’s contact list but it didn’t mean anything), but here she was, and for once in a very long time, she knew she wasn’t alone in it.

Jeff leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to Annie’s temple, resting his nose there with closed eyes… for once in a very long time for him too, he knew he wasn’t alone. He had Annie, and he had a _son,_ and that’s all he needed and wanted.

“You might want to just let him latch on now.” The nurse said as she watched over, walking away as Annie nodded and looked over at Jeff nervously.

 _“You can do it.”_ Jeff whispered assuringly, making Annie relax just a bit. Within a couple of minutes, mother and baby were latched on together, a tiny little hand pressed up against Annie’s chest. Annie looked down and cringed a bit at the thought.

“This is _weird._ ” She said to Jeff as he rested his head on the mattress to admire the sight. He tilted his head and pouted.

“Gets more action than I do.” Annie’s mouth dropped open at the comment, glaring at him through squinted eyes.

“Not really appropriate Jeff.” Jeff smirked, stroking his hand on Annie’s leg again as she settled down slightly. He sat contently, not sure what to say or do.

_I’m a dad. I have a baby. Annie is my wife. Annie is my baby’s mom. I have a son. I’m a father. I can’t believe I ever thought differently about this… look at that. Look at how beautiful she is… and how ridiculously cute and adorable he is… he definitely has my good looks, but actually, he could have either of our good looks because Annie is incredible. He definitely has her eyes, which is what I hoped because look at them. Look at her. Why did she choose me? I’m going to be a terrible father and she’ll be this kick-ass mom who reads bed time stories and makes cookies. Look at his hand… he definitely is getting more action than I do. The last time that happened was when we made him… ugh, what have we done. We’ve made a ridiculously cute baby, that’s what we’ve done._

Jeff’s mind carried on, whirring around, buzzing in happiness, confusion and terror. It _was_ terrifying. The next few ~~weeks~~ years would be solely focused on _their son_ and there was no going back now. He couldn’t quite put a pin on whether it was going to be amazing or horrifying, but Jeff was sure he’d find out soon.

Annie decided it was probably best she actually spoke to their new born seeing as she had been doing that for the past nine months.

_“Hey, I’m not really sure what to say to you but, just so you know, I think you might end up having your dad’s big head, I mean, not his forehead, let’s hope you don’t get that,”_

“Hey!” Jeff called out as she whispered away.

“ _but his big head of confidence and good looks because you are extremely cute. I mean, look at you. Very cute indeed. Let’s hope you don’t fall asleep here for too long because I think somebody’s getting impatient.”_

Jeff mouthed out ‘yeah’ with a shrug, resting his head back down on the mattress. He did kind of want to squeeze his baby to death (not literally) but he was also pretty happy with just watching on, although it did run the risk of him falling asleep himself. Annie had been in labour for thirteen hours, but it had felt like a decade as she shrieked and clamped down on his hand. He was never _ever_ going to forget that.

Eventually though, their son did move a little bit, snapping Jeff and Annie out of their lull with a wailing cry that had him turning redder than his little face and body already was.

“Do you want to give it a go…?” Annie asked Jeff as he stood over, gritting his teeth at the loud cry.

“I can try…”

“You need to take your shirt off though.” Jeff gulped, shocked by Annie’s bluntness. _Was post-natal horniness a thing, or…?_

“Skin-to-skin bonding?” Annie said, waving a hand as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. He nodded and peeled his shirt off over his head, causing the nurse to stare a little bit as she re-entered the room at just the right time. Annie passed over the reins to Jeff, staring herself at the sight of a ridiculous muscular six-foot-something man cradling a few-hours-old baby. She made a mental picture of the moment, carefully turning onto her side as much as she could without feeling a jolt of soreness down below.

It was time for Jeff’s introductory whisper session now…

_“Okay, well, this is new for the both of us. I’m your dad if you didn’t know already, Jeff Winger in full, not that you need to know that yet, in fact you probably don’t need to know that for a couple of years from now… which is scary to think about, also for the both of us. But let’s not think too far ahead, let’s talk about… your mom, yeah, your mom. Now, I know you like her boobs a lot already but that’s kind of weird in my opinion, I’d rather you lay off of them after you’ve got fed up of milk or whatever because they kind of belong to me… you can admire that kind of stuff when you’re older. Keep a padlocked box under your bed or whatever, so that at some point I can bring it up and torment you with the awkwardness of that kind of conversation._

_You have a lot to learn, but so do I, so let’s just be kind to each other, shall we? Also, be kind to that mom of yours. She’s awesome when you get to know her, like literally awesome. She saved my life… kind of, I mean, she didn’t jump in front of a bullet or anything but she… helped, with a lot of things and let’s be honest, I probably don’t tell her that enough, so do me a favour, and remind me every now and again._

_You don’t seem to be crying much now, which is good, but I am a little worried that I might crush you. Like, my hand is literally almost the size of your whole body… you probably make me look like a giant, which isn’t great because I already look like a giant against your mom alone, so now I have a whole family of tiny people.”_

Annie watched on, smiling away as he mumbled, his voice just out of shot to hear. He sat down in the chair in the corner of the room, pouting as he shared his first proper father-son moment. His eyes caught on Annie, so he smiled and mouthed those two words that meant so much…

_“Love you.”_

_“Love you too.”_ She mouthed back.

* * *

 

A while later the nurse came back into the room once again with a clipboard, reassuring them that everything was fine and that they would be free to go home by the end of the day.

“Is there any chance you have a name? It’s not essential and we understand you might not have decided just yet but if you do it would be great for the paperwork.”

Annie glanced over at Jeff as he sipped on a coffee over by the crib that their son was resting in. Jeff looked back at her, watching her as she gave a nod. He drew in a breath and that’s when it became very real.

“Sebastian… Winger.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (Don't worry, there's one last part of this series coming soon. Hope you've enjoyed it so far!)


End file.
